Amourshipping: One Day Off
by 123pearlshipping
Summary: Ash decides to just take one day off. Just one. But you'd be surprised how much can change in one day. It was never the relaxing day Ash wanted. But he wouldn't have changed it. Never even thought of changing it. Not even for a second. AshXSerena, SatoSere, Amourshipping.AASL, Childhoodshipping, 150,000 reads, good God, thanks guys, you all rock!
1. Chapter 1

Hello once again, everyone! This time, I'm back with another Amourshipping story. The premise for this one is that Ash takes just one day off his training regiment, and how the things he does instead change the normal routine.

This is hopefully going to be a few chapters long, because I like writing long fanfictions. I also like writing them as if I were writing an episode, which is my writing show, for those of you wondering. The first chapter might be short, but I assure oh the next chapter will be longer, and quite humorous as well :D

At any rate, let us begin!

* * *

Ash, whom had just woken up from a deep and, frankly one of the best sleeps he had had in a very long time, stared at the ceiling, contemplating his next few steps.

His Kalos journey was going fantastic so far. Pikachu was as tough as ever, as always, putting in 110% into every battle he was in. He was sleeping to Ash's right, still snoring very lightly. "Pika... Pika..."

Ever since evolution, Frogadier was becoming more masterful at battling every day, showing off its exceptional battling skills, and steadily improving.

Fletchinder was improving quickly as well. Confident and proud, that was Fletchinder down to the T.

Hawlucha was... Well, Hawlucha, mastering his own battling style, and still finishing off opponents with his Flying Press attack. Still a complete powerhouse, and was one of Ash's toughest Kalos Pokèmon.

And finally Skiddo, his newest friend, the shiny coloured grass type was excitable and energetic, yet loyal and ready to fight when needed. He was fitting in well.

Ash smiled as he thought about everyone, about how loyal they were to him, and how they tried their hardest for them in battle. He never considered them to be 'under his possession'. He considered them to be his friends, and his friends weren't a possession to him. His thoughts then redirected to his next major battle.

His next gym battle wasn't too far away. He only needed a few more badges in order to enter the Kalos league. Normally he would be ecstatic about that, and have jumped out of bed, gotten dressed, wolfed down some breakfast and be training hard by this time. But today he felt different. For whatever reason, he just felt like taking a day off of hard, intensive training, just for today.

He looked over towards Serena, still sound asleep. He smiled. He had developed a slight... Okay, more than he was willing to admit, infatuation with her.

There was a hundred reasons why he had developed feelings for her. She was kind, she was supportive, she gave him confidence, she was... Cute. Ash felt his cheeks heat up at the thought of the word.

Upon a closer inspection, Ash noticed that she must have been tossing and turning in her sleep. Her bed sheet covers were around her waist, casually tossed to the side slightly as well. He chuckled. 'I thought I was the restless sleeper?'

Quietly he got out of his bed, careful not to wake her up. He heard a floorboard creak, but it wasn't too loud, thankfully.

He stood by Serena's bed, and stopped, and looked at her for a while. She seemed so peaceful. She was sleeping on her left shoulder, on her side, her right hand tucked under her chin, and with a smile on her face.

'How cute can you get?' Ash thought sub-consciously (to the point he didn't even realise he had thought it), while looking at her. She looked like a kid to Ash, the way she slept, her hand tucked under her chin, and her body trying to make itself as small as it could. That made Ash chuckle. It was easy to forget this was her first journey, so she still had a bit of that kid-like-vibe new trainers often had. He thought back to his first journey. He had been no exception.

Ash grinned. He got a hold of the covers and pulled them back over Serena, up past her shoulders, making it so that only her head was visible. 'That should keep her warm.'

Ash then looked at Serena's guide tablet, which she kept next to her bed every night. Without thinking too much about it, he picked it up.

"Sorry, Serena," He spoke softly. He spoke as if she could hear him, but he kept his voice down so as not to wake her "but I need to know what time it is."

He opened the tablet and hit a few buttons, making the screen come up. 9:21AM. He looked back at his bed and shrugged. "Been a long time since I had a real lie in." He said, quietly to himself, talking to no one in particular. "Sleep well, Serena. I won't be waking you up today."

He climbed back into his bed and wrapped himself in his duvet once again, quickly falling asleep.

* * *

"Ash. Ash, wake up."

Ash woke up to find his group of friends, Serena, Clemont and Bonnie standing around his bed and staring at him like he'd run into their respective houses, broke all the windows then ran off down the street. To put it simply, they were confused, and surprised.

Ash sat up with a yawn. "Morning everyone. What's up?"

"What's up? What's up with you? Do you know what time it is?!" Bonnie screeched.

"No... How would I?" Ash asked.

"It's nearly 11:00!" Clemont said, louder than normal.

"Really? Huh." Ash commented with a yawn.

"You'd have been up and training and waking us up hours ago!" Bonnie cried out again.

"Are you okay, Ash?" Serena asked. Unlike Clemont or Bonnie, whose voices seemed to hold mostly shock, her voice was full of concern. Maybe she thought Ash was sick. Ash smiled warmly at her.

"Of course I'm fine." He said. "I was just thinking... Well, all my Pokèmon have been working so hard lately... Thought I'd take a day off and just relax for a change."

Three pairs of eyes fell on him.

"Hey, I get tired and need a break too, y'know." Ash said with a sigh and a sweat-drop. He really came across as that much of a machine to them?

Clemont seemed to recover the quickest. "It is true that people who work hard need to take a break everyone once in a while. Back in Lumious city, I needed to take breaks from battling and inventing too."

"I kept telling you to use those bits of free time to work on your cardio! How am I supposed to find you a good wife when you run like a hardened Magmacargo?!" Bonnie said loudly.

"Firstly, it's pronounced Magcargo, not Magmacargo. And secondly, I've told you to stop doing that!" Clemont yelled at his sister. The two entered one of their spats again which seemed to becoming more common.

Ash and Serena sighed. Ash climbed out of bed, and faced Serena. "So, you sleep alright?"

On cue, Serena stretched her arms upwards toward the ceiling. In doing so, the smallest amount of skin on her stomach showed. "Uh huh. That's the best I've slept in a long time."

"Ah hah... Sorry about that. I keep waking you up every day, don't I?" Ash said, scratching his cheek.

"Uh huh. It's fine though, really. You save us having to get an alarm clock." Serena giggled.

Ash laughed lightly. Clemont and Bonnie were still having their argument. "You feel like getting some food, Serena?" Ash asked, casually.

"Sure!" Serena smiled. She looked towards Bonnie and Clemont. "Aren't we gonna ask them?"

Ash shrugged. "You know how they are. Leave 'em to it for a while, they'll come down."

Serena nodded in agreement, before turning to Clemont and Bonnie. Clemont had gotten his Aipom arm invention and was using it to hold Bonnie in the air. They were still shouting at one another. Serena sighed. Once they started like this, they wouldn't stop until they got it out of their systems. Serena decided to leave them to it, and followed Ash.


	2. Chapter 2

Hello everyone! It is me again, with another chapter of this story. I've decided I want to aim for 8 chapters with this one, maybe more, because I haven't done a long story in a while, and I'd kinda Like to try one again.

Also, ORAS dropped today In the UK. It's so good!

So, without further ado, let us begin this story!

* * *

After finishing breakfast, Ash called out all of his Pokémon from their Pokéballs to explain that they were having the day off.

"You guys have really been working hard lately, so I figured you deserve a rest." Ash had told his Pokémon. They had been surprised yet generally happy with their trainers decision to allow them some time off. They had quickly began playing various games. Even Hawlucha, the 'lone wolf' of the group decided to join in with the fun for once.

Ash watched them from underneath the tree where he was taking cover from the sun. He smiled, and continued polishing his equipment; Pokéballs, and his Gym Badges.

"Okay Fennekin." Ash heard Serena, and saw her not far away, just behind the tree he was resting under, with her Fennekin and Pancham. "We did really well for our debut performance, and you two were great!"

Her Pokémon beamed at the praise they were being showered with. Serena and her Pokémon never really trained in the same way Ash and his Pokémon had done, and they hadn't ever received compliments the way they were now.

Ash smiled again. He remembered her performance. She had really worked hard, and practiced and practiced over and over for it, and it had paid off. She had been generally well received, exceptionally so for her first performance.

He himself had been utterly captivated by the performance. To start with, the dress she wore and how she had done her hair made her look absolutely incredible, and what made her look even more amazing was the fact she hasn't used any make-up whatsoever. Ash had found himself focused completely in Serena and her performance. He had noticed her smile. Such a sweet smile. It wasn't her normal smile, but the one that showed she was loving what she was doing, that she enjoyed the work she was doing. Ash didn't think he had seen her so happy. Seeing Serena happy made him happy as well.

"So, I'd like to practice a few new things for the next performance we have." She told her Pokémon. Pancham in particular seemed happy with that. After all, it did love to perform.

"Urm, actually, a lot of what I had planned mainly involved Fennekin, Pancham..." Serena told her first capture. Pancham looked absolutely crushed before Serena said with a smile "Don't worry, I have something very special planned for your performance!"

Pancham's spirits were raised against after that. "Maybe you should relax for a bit while I try what I had planned with Fennekin." Serena suggested.

Pancham nodded and jogged off to the side, where it planned to sit down against the tree Ash was currently resting against. Once Pancham sat down, Ash spoke, "Oh, hey, Pancham, I thought you'd be performing right about now?"

Pancham gestured over to Serena and Fennekin, as Serena told Fennekin her ideas. "Pan Pancham."

"Oh, I see. This one is mainly for Fennekin?" Ash asked. Pancham nodded, but still looked trademarkingly confident. Ash decided to take another guess. "And I'm guessing she has something planned for you too?"

Again, Pancham nodded. "Pancham!"

"You really have an incredible trainer, you know that?"

"Pancham?"

As if on cue, the embers that Fennekin had been firing into the sky as part of the performance came crashing back down to earth, narrowly missing Serena and Fennekin, who had to frantically dodge the falling fireballs.

"You alright, Serena?" Ash called over.

Serena picked herself up, brushed off the dirt on her clothes, and waved back. "Yeah... Just... Just had a little mishap, that's all."

Ash laughed. "You know, Pokémon performances remind me a lot of Pokémon contest performance rounds."

"Pokémon contests?" Serena asked, with a quizzical look in her face.

"It's something similar to Pokémon Performances in the Hoenn and Sinnon regions. They had an appeal and battle round. The Pokémon Performances remind me of the appeals round of a contest." Ash explained.

"Did you see take part in one?" Serena asked.

"I took part in a few, but it wasn't particularly my scene." Ash shrugged. "I can help you if you like."

Ash wasn't sure, but he thought he saw a slight blush in Serena's face. "A-Are you sure?"

"Sure I'm sure." Ash smiled. "Hey, Pikachu, come over here for a second buddy!"

Pikachu responded fairly quickly to his trainers calls, jumping down from a tree and running over to Ash.

"Hey, Pikachu, you mind if I use you to show Serena the contest moves we used those few times back in Hoenn and Sinnoh?" Ash asked. He was responded with a nod and a smile.

"You remember the Thunderbolt rings?"

"Pika!"

"Alright then. Serena, watch this."

Serena say down with Fennekin and watched. It was weird to see Ash about to do some sort of performance, as opposed to battle training.

What Serena saw impressed her even more. With a combination of Thunderbolt and Iron Tail, Pikachu had created several electrical rings spinning and crashing into into other.

"That's about it. Thanks, buddy." Ash smiled. Pikachu returned the smile, before running of back to join in with the games.

"Wow..." Was all Serena could manage.

"Not my forte..." Ash chuckled, scratching the back of his head. "But I guess it impressed the judges..."

"I didn't know you could do that sort of thing." Serena said, complimenting Ash.

"Ah hah..." Ash laughed.

"Well, master performer, what do you recommend I do?" Serena said, teasingly.

Ash felt something. He could have sworn that she was being flirty with him. He shook off the thought. "Uh, Fennekin knows how to use Hidden Power, right? Try using that into the air."

Serena nodded. "Okay Fennekin, you heard him, Hidden Power, and aim for the sky!"

Fennekin nodded, before firing the move In to the air... Before it came crashing down. Like before, Ash, Serena, and Fennekin had to frantically dodge the falling attacks.

One of the Hidden Powers was rapidly falling towards Serena, who was looking in the opposite direction. "Serena, watch out!"

Ash ran and grabbed Serena, pulling her out of the way of the falling move before it hit the ground, pushing Serena to the ground next to him.

Both of them were left without breath. " I can see... Why that... Isn't your forte..." Serena gasped.

"I'm so sorry..." Ash said, between gasps. "That wasn't... My smartest idea..."

Ash and Serena picked themselves up. It was then that Ash realised how close they actually were right now. Maybe a few centimetres away at most. Ash blushed.

"U-Um... W-What about Flamethrower?" He quickly suggested.

"Flamethrower?"

"Yeah... For one thing, we won't have to dodge any falling moves."

So Serena tried that. And that went better. For a while, Ash and Serena kept brainstorming ideas. Serena's original idea had been to have a ring of Ember surround her and Fennekin, they perform their routine, and Fennekin ended it with a Hidden Power. Though, remembering the performance failure that had occurred barely 10 minutes ago, she decided that she wasn't ready for that yet. She would have to practice more for it.

During their brainstorming, Serena suddenly realised something. "Aren't you supposed to be taking the day off?"

Ash stopped and seriously thought for a minute. He was, wasn't he? Then again, he really wanted to see Serena do well. So he replied with a smile, saying "I am. I said I was having a day off training, I never said I was going to lay around all day."

Ash titled his head slightly, so his hat covered his eyes. He was blushing lightly right now, and he didn't want Serena to know it. He looked at her with closed eyes and a smile. "Besides, I really want to see you do well, and I'll help you out so I can see your smile when you perform!"

* * *

And there's chapter two guys. I hope you enjoyed it. I like the idea of Ash helping Serena out with her performances.

Also, I am aware of the apparent date episode coming up. Though it pains me to say, I think I it's a safe assumption it'll just be Amourshipping fanservice. It'd be nice if I were wrong, but if anyone thinks it will be 'they go out, have a romantic meal and kiss by the sunset' then I think you may not recognise how Pokémon is wrote. It's upsetting, I would REALLY love to see the date episode be the most romantic thing in Pokémon ever made, and I do pray that I am wrong, but until then...

Anyway, distractions aside, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and if to did, be sure to follow it to always be updated on when I update. A lot of people liked this story, which made me very happy, so if you have anything to say, leave a review, and I'll be sure to reply to you, as I read them all.

Other than that, I hope you enjoyed, and I'll see you all in the next chapter! Bye everyone!


	3. Chapter 3

WE RETURN! Sorry this look longer to update, I've been having some very upsetting problems these past few days, and to top that off, exams have.. Well, not so much been eating up my free time, but just mentally draining me. I require sleep ;n; Not to mention my stuff on YouTube has had to be kept up to date, leaving me with only 00:00 AM to 01:30AM to write. Yep, I'm that dedicated to both YouTube and this, because screw you, school, I only have to deal with you for another week.

But yes, me taking out all my frustrations of my inevitably ruined life aside, lets begin this chapter!

* * *

The training that Ash and Serena went through had its ups and downs. Serena's image of what she wanted was simply not matching up with what Fennekin was capable of.

"No, no, not like that, Fennekin! You need to spin around on your back legs when the fire comes down, not on all fours. It looks like you're chasing your tail if you do that." Serena told her partner Pokémon.

"Fenn Fenne..."

Ash scratched the back of his head. "Fennekin tried, and she got dizzy. "

"So we'll have to come up with a way to come around that as well?" Serena asked.

"Probably."

Serena sighed. "This felt so much easier the first time..."

"You set a great debut, so they'll be expecting you to out in a doubly big show for your nex-" Clemont put in, before Ash frantically waved his hands to cut him off from finishing his sentence.

Looking back at Serena, she seemed to be trembling with nervousness. Seeing her like this reminded him of how he felt in his first gym battle. Nervous. A bit sick.

Fennekin tried to cheer up her trainer. It went and nudged its trainers hands. "Fenne, Fenne Fennekin..."

"Hey, Serena..."

Serena got up, and turned to face Ash. The look on her face wasn't one of fear or nervousness, or even remote concern. It was of something Ash hadn't seen on her face before. It was determination, rivalling his own.

"You don't think that I'm going to give up that easily, do you?" Serena said, with a smile, which seemed to turn her determination into confidence. "I still remember what you said. I won't ever forget it. You never give up 'till its over."

When Ash first reunited with Serena, he didn't recognise her. He could even remember her. How was beyond him, in retrospect. But when he heard her repeat his "don't give up" phrase, there was little doubt in his mind that he had to have at least known her previously. But back then he hadn't felt what he was now.

He felt his heart jolt. And he felt something more... he couldn't begin to figure out what.

Maybe it was his infatuation. But it felt different. Like a sense of... pride. Proud. Was he proud of himself? He told her that when they first met, and she had learnt from it and used it to fuel herself.

No. He wasn't proud of himself. He was proud of her. Proud that this girl, whom at first seemed so gentle and delicate, was now becoming stronger over the course of time.

"That's the spirit!" Ash said with a smile of his own.

He thought to himself, realising his choice of words.

Gentle? Delicate? When did he start using these words to describe Serena? He blushed. He felt like he had been caught writing a poem. Gentle and delicate. When had he ever used those words in anything before?

Having said that, when had he been infatuated like he was before? Was it an infatuation anymore, though? Ash blushed at the thought of the word in his mind.

"Ash?"

Ash snapped back into reality when he heard Serena call his name. "Yeah. Yeah, yeah, yeah, sorry."

Ash scratched his cheek, and thought over what Serena's exact idea was. A synchronised performance. She was going to mimic every move Fennekin made, and vice versa. To do that, they had to be in absolute sync, there could be no room for error.

Ash sighed. This wasn't gonna be easy.

It took them a while, but the performance was finally starting to come together. A few simple tweaks, such as making Fennekin use Flamethrower in a spin to the left, then spinning while the flames came down to the right, adding a few bits, and taking other bits away, the performance was finally coming into its own.

Ash let out a large sigh of both relief and exhaustion. It had been tricky getting that bit right. Though he had to say- it looked great. Defiantly, it was going to receive some great reviews at the performance, Ash thought to himself.

Serena had just done another rehearsal with Fennekin, which Ash had watched. After it had finished, Serena courtesies, and Fennekin bows its head.

Ash gave them a small applause. "That looks incredible! All that work paid off." He added with a smile.

Serena showed her pretty smile once again. "Thanks!"

Ash smiled again. The more he watched her, the more he felt inclined to help her improve. Her performance just then had been incredible. He thought to himself 'It's been a difficult few days of training for her, hasn't it? Come to think of it, it has been for me too. Ha... She's really coming along well... I'm proud of her.'

Ash chuckled to himself, and leaned back into the tree he was leaning against. "You know something? I'm really impressed with you."

"Huh?"

"Yeah. Putting this much passion Into something is a talent in itself, and look at how hard you're working. You've been brainstorming non-stop, you've formulated ideas with your Pokémon, you've done sketches of what you want... And now look at the end result." Ash grinned. "You've certainly changed since I first met you in Kanto."

Serena laughed. "I would have hoped so, that was when I was 7 years old."

Ash laughed. That was true. But still...

"I'm really glad I met you that day." Ash said, warmly to Serena.

Serena blushed lightly. This was one of the first times Ash had noticed Serena blushing to something he had specifically said to her. It wasn't much, but enough for Ash to notice. Fennekin was talking with Pancham, so Serena decided it would be a nice time to break for a bit. She sat next to Ash, still red, and said. "I...I'm glad I did too. Otherwise I might not be able to enjoy this journey with you."

This time it was Ash's turn to blush, but his was much less noticeable. "You'd have done fine without me. "

Serena shook her head. "No... The only reason I set out on a journey in the first place... Was because of you."

"Huh?"

"The Garchomp news story..." Serena looked into the sky. "I recognised you... I couldn't believe you did that..."

Ash sighed, remembering the mess Team Rocket had caused them that day. "Well, I couldn't leave Garchomp in that much pain."

"I've been meaning to ask, is that Garchomp your Pokémon?" Serena asked.

"Nah. It's Professor Sycamores. I have a Gible, but he's back in Kanto."

"So..." Serena asked, looking at Ash "Why?... I mean... When I figured out it was you... I couldn't believe it... But... You nearly died then! I mean... "

Ash stayed silent, listening to Serena speak her mind. Her voice was becoming choked. She was upset.

"I... After I started traveling with you, I... I had a horrible thought. What if you weren't saved after you fell from the tower?... I... That would have been horrifying... The first time I see you in years, and you die on the news?... That's -"

Ash couldn't bare listening to Serena like this. He grabbed her and pulled her into a deep hug, tightly holding onto her, with one arm around her waist, and the other on the back of her head, holding it firmly but comfortably into his chest.

"Don't think like that, Serena. I'm here, aren't I? I'm not going anywhere." He said softly to his crush, trying to comfort her.

"Ash..."

Ash chuckled lightly. "Heh... Didn't think you would be so affected by something I did before we even met up again."

"H-Hey-"

Ash hugged Serena tighter. "Sorry, Serena. I didn't mean to worry you. Heh, if I'd known you were watching that, I'd have made more of an effort to not fall off a tower."

Ash felt Serena wrap her arms around his back. Her touch sent a jolt of electricity down his spine, but he kept holding Serena.

"Sorry... About this... "Serena said quietly, partly hoping Ash didn't hear.

"It's no problem. We never really had a chance to talk like this before, did we?" Ash said, only speaking his mind now. "... Hey Serena?"

"Yeah?"

"Thanks for worrying about me. It means a lot to know you worry about me like that."

Serena blushed, but considering her face was buried in Ashs chest, Ash didn't notice. One thing Serena had been noticing was that Ash's heart pulse had been quickening this entire time. "You're welcome..."

"C'mon, I think that you've done enough training for today." Ash said. "Take it easy for the rest of the day. We can chat like we used to back in camp. That'd be fun."

* * *

And so ends this chapter, everyone! I hope you've enjoyed this!

Last time I said I would reply to all reviews, so, late as they are, here we go!

Nov 30 c2 Nemo

Unfortunately, I think you are exactly right on the upcoming date episode. I hope we are wrong, but it just ain't gonna happen. But that is what fan fiction is for, no? Anyhow, great chapter and great story idea. Ash taking a day off from training to help Serena, well you are certainly setting the stage for some armourshipping. I also like how Ash is not completely oblivious. Anyhow, I am looking forward to the next chapter.

Reply: Yeah, I really hope we are wrong, but we do have these fabrics to tied us over until we inevitably storm the animation building until we force them to make it cannon, no?

Dec 1 c2 NGA96

This is so cute! please continue :)

Reply: Way ahead of you, buddy. Glad you liked it.

Nov 29 c2 Taco Senpai

I like this pairing and the fanfic keep up the great work,can't wait to see how the rest of it goes.

Reply: I hope you enjoy what I have planned : )

Nov 28 c1 Red

Hey, this is really nice! Update soon :D

Reply: Already done, buddy. : ) Hope you enjoyed this update.

Nov 29 c2 1Ikcatcher

I really like your stories,they seem like actual scenarios in the anime so keep it up

Reply: That's how I like to write. Creations a scenario out of nowhere else doesn't sit right with me. I like to explore small things, and how they can almost always become big things if they happen a certain way. I'm glad you enjoy the way I write.

Nov 25 c1 pie

cant wait to read what happens in the next chapter

Reply: what's you think?

Nov 25 c1 202Agent BM

Don't Forget, Ash Will Capture A Goomy Too.

Reply: I am always skeptical about new captures. I refuse to believe Ash will capture Goomy until I see that Pokéball click. Though I accept Goomy will be coming along for the ride from the screenshots, I remain skeptical until the episode airs. I've always been that way. Goomy will stick around, but I remain Skeptical as to who will catch it.

And there, I kept my promise guys! I'll see you next chapter! Any questions or ideas, leave them in a review, because, as I just proved, I read and review them all : D

See you, guys!


	4. Chapter 4

Haha... It's been a while, hasn't it? Sorry about that, I've been EXTREMELY BUSY lately. I plan to finish this story, do not worry about that for a second. his is something I plan on finishing.

Without further ado, here you go! Chapter 5 of One Day Off!

* * *

Serena looked out from the balcony of her room, watching the sun set on what had been a long and tough day of hard training. Watching the sun made her feel relaxed, and have her the time to collect her thoughts.

She thought about the day she had had, training with Pancham and Fennekin, and how much they had achieved that day. Their performance had come on in leaps and bounds.

But something she found herself always thinking about intruded her mind.

Ash.

She smiled, remembering the day she had had with him and blushed. That was one upside to not having to be around her friends all the time. She often found herself blushing, and it was nice to have some time to herself and didn't have to worry about blushing in front of everyone.

This was supposed to be a day of relaxation for Ash. That in itself was rare, but he had instead spent the day helping her perfect her performance. She wondered 'why?'.

Why did Ash help her?

She sighed. She loved Ash, of that she had no doubts in her mind. She had loved him for a long time now. There was only so much pressure, Serena felt, that she could bottle up at this point with her feelings for him.

She wasn't ashamed to admit she loved him at all. But she often wondered what he felt about her. Was she just a friend? Was she a best friend? Or was she just someone tagging along for the ride? She mentally crossed that one off her list. Ash had invited her to journey with him, didn't he? She was a friend at the minimum, she came to the conclusion

She sighed again. She had had moments of doubt, just as anyone did. But moments of doubt can plant the seeds for terrible assumptions and mistakes. She shivered.

"What am I to you, Ash?" Serena said, talking to herself, looking up towards the clouds, as if asking God himself to give her the answer she needed.

"More than you think."

For a second, Serena though God legitimately WAS answering her, but when she turned, she saw it was Clemont. Defiantly NOT God.

"U-uh...how long have you been there?" Serena asked, almost whispering in embarrassment.

"Long enough." Clemont said. "I came to get you seeing as suppers almost done."

Serena blushed. She used her long hair to cover up her face, hiding her blush. Clemont laughed "you aren't exactly sublet, you know. Bonnie and I already knew."

"Bonnie knows?"

Clemont sighed. "She can be annoying with trying to constantly find a wife for me... But to her credit, she does know alt about romance."

Serena sighed next. "How is it possible that everyone except the one guy who I want to notice knows, but not him?"

Clemont stood next to Serena and looked out the balcony. He took in the scenery. Serena must have had the best view out if all of them. "Ash can be a bit... Clueless sometimes, but he has noticed something's up. He's asked me a couple of times. I haven't said anything yet. I thought you might like to tell him in your own time."

Serena nodded, "Thank you, Clemont."

"But having said that," Serena felt her heart quicken "You might want to move it."

"What do you mean?"

"I'm his next gym battle, Serena. When he beats me, and I have no doubt he will, that'll be him up to 5 gym badges. Then he'll only have 3 more to go. I hate to say it, but we are running out of time together already. Ash isn't going to make any moves, and if he does, I can almost promise you he'll do it under the guise of a battle, or something relating to Pokèmon. Even if he does feel romantic feelings towards you, Ash wouldn't know how to act on them. Not because he doesn't care, but... I honesty doubt he's experienced love before."

Serena looked out of the balcony. Clemont had some valid points. "You're right. "

Clemont looked down to the ground. "It's a real shame. I've enjoyed the time we've spent together as a group. That's kind of why I want to help you out with Ash."

Serena stared at Clemont, "Huh?"

"Maybe you can convince him to stay in Kalos a while longer." Clemont said with a humorous smile. " but in all seriousness, you two are good friends of mine. Seeing both of you down like this because of one another kind if upsets me."

Serena chuckled nervously, scratching the back of her head "uh, sorry about that."

Clemont continued "and I'll be perfectly honest, you two match one another perfectly if you ask me."

Serena blushed again.

"I won't do anything without your say." Clemont said. "But... Well, sorry if this sounds rude or if its personal, but... What are your exact feelings towards him?

Serena looked out of the balcony again. "I... You know how I feel about him."

"Can't you say it?" Clemont asked.

"Huh?"

"You can't say it, can you?" Clemont sighed. "Come on. If you can't admit it to me how on Earth are you going to admit it to him?"

Serena sighed " Okay, Okay I... He's ... He's an incredible person. He has so much determination in him, so much energy for life, such a passion For what he wants to achieve. But he's also so kind, and... Just today, when he was supposed to be relaxing on his day off... He instead spent it helping me... And I didn't even think twice about accepting his help. Because I wanted him to be close to me, for just a day... Because... I love him."

Serena paused and realised everything she had just said. She went dark red and tried to hide her entire fHace behind her hair. Sure, she knew she loved him, she had known she had for years. But we had never said the words before. 'I love Ash'. They were words that were simply never said by her.

"Okay, well, we got that far. " Clemont muttered.

Serena looked away from Clemont. "Uwaaaaa..."

"It's nothing to be embarrassed about. " Clemont laughed. "I've seen you be in worse situations."

Serena sighed, once again.

"I'll talk to him." Clemont said. "I'll ask him. But I won't say anything about your feelings to him."

"Thank you, Clemont... I- I appreciate it." Serena said, nodding her head. "But... Listen, don't... Tell him too much?... I know you said you wouldn't, but if you have to... Be vague. That is something I have to do myself. I can't have you as the messenger, back and forth for us forever."

Clemont nodded "I understand. I'll ask him, and that'll be it."

"Thank you, Clemont."

"Come on. We really shouldn't keep Ash and Bonnie waiting. You think Ash is bad?..." Clemont said, only now realising how long they had spoken for, shuddering when he remembered how impatient Bonnie could be. She made Ash look like he had the patience of a saint in comparison

"That's right!" Serena said, gasping as she also realised how long they had been talking.

She swallowed and let out a sigh. She was practically relying of Clemont at this point. She could only hope that this would go well.

And there you go! A bit short and a bit lack ouster, but I wanted to dedicate a chapter to Serena's thoughts. Clemont got a bigger role in the story as a sort of splinter agent for Serena, because it occurred to me that he not Bonnie were actually doing anything during the story, so I wanted to give them a bigger role.

And yes, guys, I will try and update soon, but until then, I hope you enjoyed!

Special thanks goes to MetekinGiant for the advice hes been giving me. I appreciate it a lot. Sorry I have. I been able to reply to you as of late, but once again, I am EXTREMELY BUSY. So I do apologise.

Once again, I hope you enjoyed, and I will see you next time!


	5. Chapter 5

"What do I think of Serena?"

Clemont had asked such an unusual question, completely out of nowhere. The group had finished the food Clemont had made, and sat in what had been a fairly odd silence. The only real noise had come from the Pokemon, specifically from Chespin and Pancham, getting into one of their silly fights, and Pikachu and Hawlucha trying to break it up. Serena nor Clemont had even tried to stop the fight, as that seemed to be the routine at that point.

For Ash, who was normally talkative and energetic, the silence awkward and uncomfortable. He had no idea what was going on.

"That's right." Clemont said, confirming what Ash had just asked. "I want to know what you think of Serena."

"... This seems a bit out of the blue, Clemont. What's going on?" Ash said, raising an eyebrow in disbelief that this was just simple curiosity. He was dense, he knew that, but he wasn't stupid.

"Just... Humor me." Clemont sighed.

"...She's a childhood friend, and a great friend at present. She gives me inspiration when I'm feeling down, and I admire her willingness to go on until the bitter end." Ash said.

"Yes, okay, but what do you THINK of her?"

Ash stared blankly at Clemont. "Okay, now you've lost me."

"Do you like her?" Clemont asked.

Ash raised his eyebrow again. "Yeah, of course I do."

"Do you like her like her?"

"... When the heck did you get so interested in my personal life?" Ash asked. "This doesn't seem like you, Clemont."

"When did you get so perceptive?" Clemont jokingly asked. This got a chuckle from Ash.

"Do I like Serena like Serena?" Ash repeated. He already knew the answer was yes. He did have basic understanding of the concept of romance. He was dense, but he did have the capacity to understand

The question now was weather or not he was willing to admit it to Clemont. Clemont was a friend, and since he had saved him from the fall in the Lumiouse Gym, he trusted him completely. But on the other hand, he hadn't even told Pikachu, his most trusted companion and best buddy in the world how he felt about Serena. He had only known Clemont for a while, while he had known Pikachu for years. Som

* * *

ehow, that didn't sit right with him.

Then again, did it matter? Did it really matter who knew first? Serena was the one who deserved to know, not so much Clemont or even Pikachu for that matter.

"... You saw how I helped her today?" Ash asked.

"Yeah."

"I haven't helped out anyone else I've traveled with like that before. Take that for what it's worth. I helped her before, when we were kids, and back when I went to battle Viola, she helped me. I'm grateful for that. I owe her a lot... So, maybe I do." He said with a smile.

Clemont smiled. "That's not surprising. You can fool my sister and Serena, but not me."

"Evidently" Ash laughed. But after he had laughed, a feeling of dread came over him when he realised basically what he had done. "Uh... Why do you care, anyway?"

"I'm traveling with you guys. I'd like to at least know where everyone stands." Clemont said, giving his reasoning.

Ash sighed. That made sense, he supposed. But he couldn't shake the uneasy feeling that something else was going on.

* * *

That night, Ash went on a small walk. He was unable to sleep, and Pikachu had picked up on this, and accompanied him. They understood each other well enough for Ash to understand generally what Pikachu was saying, but still had to rely on Pikachu's exasperated actions to completely understand for more complicated explanations.

"Pika pika, Pikachu, pi pika?" Pikachu asked.

"What's wrong?... Just... Well, Clemont spoke to me today. Said some stuff. Put a lot in my head. A lot I've been thinking about." Ash said, with a heavy sigh.

"Pika Pikachu?"

"Very funny, Pikachu." Ash said with a small smile. "No. Stuff about Serena."

"Pika?"

"You gotta understand, I've known her longer than I've known you, buddy, and I've known your for a really long time. You don't know someone for that long without... Something, happening." Ash said. "Especially not someone like Serena."

Pikachu tilted it's head in confusion. "Pika?"

"Well... She's in my thoughts constantly for one thing. Secondly... Im kind of relying on her support during my gym matches... I admire her persistence... I can't get her out of my thoughts... Wait, I already said that, didn't i? See what I mean? My heads spinning and my hearts hurting. I can't think straight." Ash said, staring into the sky, trying to think about something else. Anything else. Though he had told Clement he liked Serena... That was ALL he had told him. There was... Much more than that.

"Pika pi, pika pika, pi Pikachu."

Ashs face burst red, " What?! No, I... I'm ... Alright, fine, yes, I like her. I like Serena. I'm beyond the point of just liking her, alright?"

Pikachu shook it's head "Pika Pikachu!"

"What do you mean you think it's cute?!"

"Pika pika, Pikachu pika pi."

"What, you mean like Buneary?" Ash said with a smug slime, remembering the affection his friend Dawns Buneary showed Pikachu.

Pikachu sweat dropped at this remark. It was generally an awkward feeling around Buneary when it was showing Pikachu her affection towards him.

Ash sighed again. He wasn't the kind of person who really showed what was deep inside. He wasn't the emotional kind of person... Well, he was, everyone had emotions. Feelings. Anyone who claimed not to was simply lying. Ash remembered being told that, but he couldn't remember whom. It was something he remembered, and he had accepted it, but he didn't usually show it. It was different to loosing a gym battle sad, or loosing a Pokemon league sad...

"You want the truth, Pikachu?" Ash sighed.

Pikachu tilted it's head.

"I'm lonely. Well, not lonely lonely. I've got you, Frogadier, Hawlucha and all my other Pokemon back in the Pokemon centre and back in Pallet, and I've got friends from all across the regions I've been to. Clemont, Bonnie and Serena too. I'm not lonely in that way..." Ash said, trailing off. He shared his feeling with Pikachu often, but never anything like this. He almost felt guilty, pushing his burdens on Pikachu like this.

Pikachu nudged him , urging him to continue. Ash smiled slightly. He really could rely on Pikachu.

"... I'm a dense guy, I know that. Stuff flies straight over my head sometimes... Alright, fairly often, but... I feel empty, Pikachu. Like something's missing, you know? Like... A void where my heart is. It stings... If you understand."

Pikachu had been taken aback. It wasn't like Ash to reveal stuff like that to anyone. He had never seen this side of Ash, and he had know Ash for years and years. He wondered if Ash had ever shown anyone this side of him.

"I know." Ash laughed with a chuckle. "Not something you'd expect to hear from me, is it?"

Ash looked up into the night sky. Full of stars. Light pollution was low, so they could see planets and nebulas - Ash couldn't remember what they were called, but nebulas sounded right - covered the night sky. A great huge place where no one had ever explored.

"I think I love her." Ash said, out of nowhere.

"Pika?"

"Serena. I think I love Serena. Do I?.. I do. I love Serena. I am in love with Serena." Ash said, repeating the name. It gave him a feeling of joy to speak her name.

Pikachu was speechless. He knew Ash was dense, that was just a fact. But after traveling with him, for so long, he was unable to pick up that?

"Pi... Pikachu?.."

"I can't do that. She's practicing for her showcase... Not only that... Rejection would suck. Utterly and bitterly suck." Ash sighed, and he stood up. "We should go and get some rest, I think."

Pikachu nodded, and leapt onto Ash, perching himself atop his head. "Thanks for coming out with me, and listening to me, Pikachu, buddy."

Pikachu nodded with a smile "Pika - chu!"

Ash began to walk down the pathway back to the Pokemon centre. It was late at night, and Ash was feeling a bit tire. The weight on his chest felt lifted slightly.

* * *

The area where Ash had sat was full of trees. And bushes, with flowers making the area pretty, like a well maintained garden. It would be easy for someone to hide unnoticed there.

And someone was.

Tears streamed down her eyes, with a blush so red you'd think she had fallen face first in red paint, and a mouth that couldn't decide if it was smiling or frowning.

Serena sat against a tree, her hands on her cheeks as tears streamed down.

She had only meant to get some fresh air. She hadn't expected to find Ash here, talking to Pikachu.

She had heard nearly every word, and had heard every word that mattered.

Her tears were those of sorrow and happiness, her emotions both of joy and grief.

Joy that Ash liked her, loved her, as he said. But sadness that she made him feel such pain.

"Now what should I do?" she asked aloud.

She didn't know. But she knew that she didn't want to keep her feelings for him secret any longer.

* * *

There we have it guys.

A few of you might be wondering why I decided to make Ash a kind of emotional vessel for this chapter. Truth be told, his emotions in the chapter reflect my own, as I'm going through a crappy time right now, and this was, in a way, stress relief for me.

I also think that if I wrote a happy sappy chapter when I'm on the verge of biting a bullet, it would kind of come across as... Yeah XD

Not too sure what to do about Serena's new look. I kinda like it, but how should I put it into the story? Maybe a time skip? Or just deal with it, let you guys put the appearance you want Serena to have onto the fanfic? I don't really like doing that kind of time skip thing. Let me know what you think.

As always,I'm hope you enjoyed : D


	6. Chapter 6

There they were. Sat on the grass, completely alone, away from even their Pokèmon, watching the sun set behind the sea. Now was the perfect time. It was dream like conditions

"There... There's been something I've been wanting to tell you... Something I've wanted to tell you for a long time. A really long time." Serena said to Ash, blushing dark red.

"What is it, Serena?" Ash asked, his face close to Serena's.

"I like you. I like you a lot. I've liked you since we were little. I like that you're kind, funny, childish, and determined. I love you,Ash." Serena said, leaning into Ash, their lips meeting-

Serena shot up, awake, in her bed at the Pokémon centre, with a huge blush on her face.

* * *

They say that when you know something or do something with someone, you can never look at them the same away again. Could you look at someone the same way if you knew they were a Pokémon hunter?

Probably not. Which was why Serena found herself hesitant to go downstairs in the morning. She was up, had showered, changed, packed her bags and was ready to go.

But she was hesitant to actually go downstairs.

It was what she heard Ash say the night prior. She hadn't slept much after that. And when she did sleep, she had had that dream.

She knew it was just a dream, and that nothing had happened in real life, but...

She had dreamt of Ash before, of course she had, it was only natural, and she had dreamt of telling him how she felt. But this dream was different, as she had kissed him in that dream. Her dreams usually were only her telling Ash she liked him, if that at all. She would get flustered even in her dreams, but she had dreamt she had kissed Ash.

She blushed again. "If only...uwaaaaah!" She blushed harder, covering up her red cheeks with her hands.

"Serena?"

Serena looked up to see Ash, stood at the foot of the steps, staring blankly at her. "Uh... You okay?"

Serena was blushing and panicked slightly "uh... U-u-u-um..."

Ash sensed that she was embarrassed and uncomfortable, and decided to change the subject, before she become further upset. "You gonna come on down? It's just me down here. Clements trying to get Bonnie out of bed still." He added in jokingly, "I'm not gonna bite you."

Serena nodded and regained her composure. "Yeah... Yeah, I'll... I'm coming down." She then blushed, deep red, thinking what she thought. She knew Ash liked her... Maybe she should play around with him a bit?... No, that wouldn't be fair on him... Still...

Could this be a way to show him how she felt? Just a quick thing, or an occasional little play? Could that hurt? Or would it be wrong? Maybe it would push him to make the first move instead...

In the end, it came down to one thing - did she want to do it? The answer was yes. She sighed lightly, and turned to an oblivious Ash.

"Hey, Ash?.." Serena asked, blushing at what she was about to do, but already moving to do it.

"Yeah Se- woah!" Ash started, but was cut off by Serena wrapping her arms around his neck.

Quickly, Serena wrapped her arms around Ash, and pulled herself into him, bringing the two close into a hug. Serena blushed madly and buried her face into Ash's shoulder, covering up her blushing face. Ash remained stunned for a while, before even registering what was going on.

"H-huh?! Serena?! What're you doing!" Ash asked, almost yelling out of sheer shock and embarrassment.

"Just... Thanks. " Serena said, in a quiet, whispering voice.

"Huh?... What for?..." Ash asked, in a more composed manner this time.

"For yesterday. I don't know what it was... But I couldn't get my performance right at all. I just couldn't get it right... I might have looked confident... But I was really upset with the constant failures. But you helped me get it right in just a few hours. Thank you." Serena told him her honest feelings, tightening her grip on him.

Ash remained silent for a while. He had noticed Serena's confident look, but always felt that she was uneasy inside...

Ash silently returned the hug, wrapping one arm just above her waist, and the other around her back.

It was an odd sensation for Ash, but it was, by no means whatsoever, a bad one. Just from the hug, he felt less stressed, like it had just melted out of his system, and felt more relaxed. But above all, he felt the 'hole in his heart' become filled. For the first time in a while, he didn't feel lonely anymore. It was a feeling he never wanted to let go of.

But he had to. He couldn't hold on to Serena forever, no matter how much he wanted to. If Serena hadn't been the one to break the hug up, Ash wasn't sure if he'd have ever let her go.

"Thanks." He said.

"Huh?"

"Honestly, I've felt a bit down lately, and you just made me feel a whole lot better. So thanks." Ash replied with his trademark toothy grin.

Serena responded by blushing lightly and smiling back. She put her hands behind her waist and leaned forward slightly " Glad I can help!"

Despite not realising right away; it was only after she had sat down and began to have her breakfast, that she realised two things.

The first thing was that, despite being initially too nervous to even walk down the stairs to face him, after a small amount of time, she had gotten more used to being around him again. In short, she gave him confidence. He gave her confidence before, but this time, knowing what she knew, it was more on a... Personal level... Did that make sense? Serena supposed it didn't. It was different to encouraging her with her performance. Anyone could do that if they knew what they were doing. This was more in a personal level, and despite Ash not knowing, she felt closer to him than ever before.

The second thing she realised was that she had just been straight up FLIRTING with the guy, and hadn't even know it! Yes, she had been contemplating it, but she actually did it, and wasn't even aware of it! When she realised that, she had been eating a piece of toast, and it had gotten caught in her throat, and had to be washed down with orange juice, provided by - who else?- Ash. Embarrassed, Serena took the drink, chugged the whole thing down within a few seconds, and, after saying her gratitude, turned away to prevent him from seeing her blush. The realisation made her flustered somewhat.

"Sheesh, what's taking Clemont so long? I know Bonnie's a heavy sleeper, but this is ridiculous, even for me." Ash said with a mildly irritated sigh.

"I'll go check on him. Maybe one of his inventions blew up again." Serena said, standing up and also sighing.

"Wouldn't we have heard that? We'd have heard if his 'Get-Bonnie-Out-Of-Bed-O-Matic 2.0 ' exploded. "Ash said.

"Isn't that just basically an alarm clock?"

"I don't think anyone has the heart to tell him that."

Serena went over to Clemont and Bonnie's room, seeing as they shared a room together, she remembered the conversation the two of them had had together. She knew how Ash felt about her, so there wasn't anything Clemknt could tell her, was there? She sighed and wondered to herself.

"Room 256... Room 256..." She muttered to herself, helping her jog her memory as to the room they were staying in.

She smiled when she saw room 254. That meant their room had to be just around the corner.

"Bonnie, you need to calm down! I promised Serena I wouldn't tell anyone!"

"Oh come on, big brother, she won't find out! I'm an expert at keeping secrets!"

"Clearly."

Serena recognised the voices, and from the conversation she just overheard, she stopped for half a second, and forced herself to not punch the nearest door in frustration.

'He didn't. They're talking about something else, and this has nothing to do with our talk.' She thought to herself. That was the truth... But it wasn't going to stop her from clarifying that with Clemont.

She approached the open door, and saw Clemont trying to get Bonnie, who was excitedly jumping from one bed on one half of the room to another, and Dedene, who, when Bonnie was on one bed, Dedene was on the other.

Serena cleared her throat, so that everyone would hear "Ahem."

Three sets of eyes landed on Serena, one of which were of dread, the other gleaming with anticipation. Bonnie ran up to Serena and gave her a huge hug.

"Ahah! Morning, Serena! Clemont told me all about the talk you two had! I think it's great that you like Ash! It's really romantic!"

Serena returned the hug to Bonnie, as she normally would do, "Oh, really, did he?"

Clemont sighed in exasperation, "Bonnie, I thought you said she wouldn't find out!"

"Nu- uh! I said he wouldn't find out! I meant Ash!"

You said she!"

"Nu- uh!"

Clemont sighed and sat down on a bed. Frankly, after cashing Bonnie down they way he had been, he was ready to, fall asleep straight away again.

"Bonnie, there's some breakfast waiting for you. I'd hurry before Ash ate it!" Serena said, teasing Bonnie with both the promise of yummy food, and the threat of Ash eating said yummy food.

Bonnie needed no more motivation, and dashed towards the eating area. After she was gone, Serena smiled a genuine smile in the direction she had run off in. She really was like the sister she never had.

"Okay, I get you might be a little upset..." Clemont started.

"Really, Clemont? You couldn't even manage a day." Serena said with a sigh.

"Sorry. Bonnie's been convicted for a while that you had a thing for Ash, or vice versa, for a while now, I had to tell her."

Serena sighed. "Well, she wasn't wrong either way. You know what, it doesn't matter."

"Either way?" Clemont asked, confused before remembering something himself "Oh, that reminds me. I spoke with Ash yesterday. I think you'll like this. He does like you after all!"

"I already know that. Last night, I went out for a walk, and Ash and Pikachu had also gone out, and Ash was talking with Pikachu... He said he... L-Loved me..."

Clemont smiled, "Well, that's good news, isn't it? He only told me he liked you, but that's one better, right?"

Serena blushed, " I suppose... It's made me a little more nervous around him though... But I spent a bit of time... F-flirting... With him... It's... I've had mixed feelings about it... It just... Feels a bit awkward now." Despite her feeling more confident and comfortable with Ash after talking with him for a while, already she felt hesitant to go back and face him again. It felt like she had to adapt just to look him in the face.

"I'm sure it'll get better." Clemont said, reassuring her. "He said that he hasn't helped anyone with their work to the extent he helped you with your performance like he did yesterday. And he said to 'take that as you will'. You know what I think it means?"

"What?"

"That he wants you to do well, and that he'll do anything to help make it happen, because he loves you."

Serena felt her heart beat harder when Clemont finished saying what he said. He was right. Of what he said was true, he was right. She smiled to herself, forcing herself to not burst red, and smiled at Clemont. "Yeah, you're right. Thanks... Hey, Clemont, can I ask you something?Whats the real reason you're helping me out here? "

"You two would be happy together, and I'd like to avoid making the journey we have together awkward between the two of you. That's my honest answer."Clemont said, giving Serena a genuine heartfelt smile.

* * *

There we go, guys : D I'm going to try, emphasis on TRY, to get these out weekly, if not every two weeks. Let me say, for the record, trying to write things that are happy with flowers and rainbows and all that good stuff is damn difficult when depressed, so I'm going to have to ask for you guys to bare with me here. So, at least one every two weeks, but they'll come out when they come out.

In case you're confused, my aim with Serena here is to still give her that shy and somewhat embarrassed personality we're accustomed to, but add a fair bit of confidence to it, just to spice things up. I'm trying to go for a 'shy before, happy after' type deal, which is actually difficult to write without making her seem schizophrenic, so, aha, I hope she didn't come across that way to you guys.

I hope you enjoyed this chapter, and as always, I'll see you in the next one : D


	7. Chapter 7

"Alright Frogadier, water pulse!"

Ash's Frogadier quickly powered up what was one of its most powerful moves, and in between its hands, a sphere of water formed, and was a great shade of blue, before Frogadier fired the move off, speeding towards Ash's Hawlucha at rapid speed.

"Hawlucha, use Karate chop!" Ash commanded his other Pokèmon.

Hawlucha's hand glowed a white colour, and Hawlucha raised it into the sky, simply waiting, before, when the Water Pulse was in range, with precision and timing, slamming down into the ground, cutting exactly through the centre of the Water Pulse, knocking the move off the face of the Earth. "Lucha!"

Ash grinned, pleased with the results of Hawlucha's response, before calling out his Frogadier's next move. "Alright Frogadier, now use Aerial Ace, and Hawlucha, you use Karate Chop again!"

Frogadier demonstrated it's speed, dashing up to Hawlucha in next to no time flat, before attacking Hawlucha with an Aerial Ace using its hand, aimed to strike Hawlucha in the face, but was blocked by Hawlucha's Karate Chop attack. Frogadier then attempted to strike using its other hand, aiming this one for the torso, but it was also blocked by another Karate Chop. The two began to exchange attacks, both switching from attacking to defending again and again, neither of them able to get a hit in.

Frogadier took a step back, dodging Hawlucha's Karate chop altogether, before stepping back in and striking Hawlucha directly in the head. It was a powerful, super effective hit. Hawlucha, however, due to its battling style, took the blow with pride and minimal damage, before slamming a Karate Chop straight back at Frogadier, knocking it down to the ground. Hawlucha was used to taking the brunt force of an opponents attack. Frogadier wasn't.

"Wrap it up with Flying Press, Hawlucha! Frogadier, you counter with an Aerial Ace!" Ash commanded.

Ending a battle using Flying Press was practically Hawlucha's signature move. He wasted no time in leaping up into the air to perform the move, it's arms spread wide, and already bearing down on Frogadier. Frogadier, in akin to the battle it had with Hawlucha as a Froakie, attempted to block the move with, instead of Pound, Aerial Ace, before the two collided, creating a large dust cloud.

The result: Though Hawlucha had taken a substantial amount of damage, particularly from Frogadier's final Aerial ace, Frogadier was unable to battle, making Hawlucha the victor of the battle. Hawlucha celebrated its victory by spreading its arms out wide, and delivering its victory cry, "Luchaa!"

Ash knelt down next to his Frogadier, helping it back up. "You alright, buddy?"

Frogadier replied with a nod, before accepting an Oran berry Ash handed it. It then got up and congratulated Hawlucha by bumping fists with it, a symbol of their friendship and mutual respect for one another.

It had been a while since the events of the early morning, and Ash was hard at work, training his Pokèmon once again. Hawlucha was having a good day in particular, having won three mock battle victories in a row, though the fatigue was becoming apparent on all of his Pokèmons faces and expressions.

"Alright, good work, everyone. Let's take a break for a while. "Ash told his team, much to their relief. Frogadier and Hawlucha collapsed right on the spot out of sheer exhaustion, causing Ash to chuckle a bit. Fletchinder had landed near Bonnie, who offered to clean its wings for it, which it had agreed to. The two had gotten close since its evolution from a Fletchling.

Ash himself, for the most part, was also exhausted from the hard training. He was again tempted to call it a day, but he knew he couldn't let himself or his Pokèmon get complacent. If they ended up getting lazy, they could kiss their chance at their next badge, and the Kalos league goodbye.

Ash sat on a large rock nearby, next to the lake which the Pokèmon centre was situated. It wasn't far from where he had confessed everything to Pikachu the previous night. The thoughts and feelings which he spilt out to his long time traveling buddy were still present. Pikachu sensed this unease and leapt to his trainers side, nudging him and asking his current state. "Pika Pi, Pikachu?"

Ash looked down at his Pokèmon and smiled, scratching it between the ears, "I'm fine buddy. Just the same stuff, that's all. I've got a lot on my mind, nothing too important."

If Pikachu could speak the human language, he would have told his trainer that of course it was important, but he couldn't do that without making it painfully obvious to everyone, including Serena, what he was trying to get across, (admittedly, Pikachu would have most likely shocked both him and Serena to get his point across out of sheer frustration, something he, Ash and Serena would probably want to avoid) but instead sighed, and jumped onto his trainers lap, and laid down there, attempting to, In some way, comfort not just his trainer, but his long time close friend.

Ash smiled weakly and looked out to the lake, and tried to take his mind off of things. He thought about the Kalos league, and how he was going to win this one, and become a Pokèmon Master once and for all. He thought about his next gym, and how he was going to beat the gym leader and attain his next gym bade. He wondered what Pokèmon he had yet to see in Kalos, which he would befriend, and which he would capture. He thought about his Pokèmon, training hard for him, their trainer, and how grateful he was to all of them. He thought about...

He looked back, hearing her voice, seeing her talking to Bonnie and Clemont, the latter of which had slammed his head into the table he was sat at, causing her to giggle. Ash chuckled, and pieced together that she was either chastising him about his Chespin starting a fight with her Pancham again, or had finally broke it to him that his 'Get-Bonnie-Out-Of-Bed-O-Matic 2.0' wasn't actually a new invention.

He looked at her, from afar. He remembered seeing people act like this in movies, but he never once imagined himself being in the exact situation those fictional characters had once been in. He finally understood them.

It was the first time Ash found himself using words he rarely ever used to describe her as he watched her. 'Cute. Beautiful. Stunning. Incredible. Gorgeous.' And that was only her appearance, nothing to mention her herself, which was what Ash really loved about her.

She turned to him, causing Ash to rapidly change the direction he was facing, back out towards the lake to hide the fact that that he had gone red himself. He had come here to avoid thinking about her, but somehow, she had snuck right back into his thoughts.

He thought about Serena.

His whole mind raced, thinking about her in great detail. Ash could close his eyes and picture her as if she was stood right in front of him. He rarely thought about anyone in this much detail. Heck, it was rare for him to think of anything In this much detail.

He pulled out the Pokèball of his newest Pokèmon, his Sligoo, and a handkerchief, - the very one he had given Serena all those years ago - and began to polish it. It was important to keep the pokèballs in good condition, otherwise they would break,but that wasn't the main reason Ash was doing it. Part of it was to keep busy, so he would stop thinking about Serena.

Despite the hopes he had had of that helping ease his mind, it came to no avail. He thought about her even when he didn't want to. He thought long and hard. Eventually he just gave in, accepting that this girl was going to occupy his mind for a very long time, and there wasn't much he was going to be able to do about it. It wasn't so much the fact that she was in his thoughts. He had accepted how he felt about Serena, and even confessed it to Pikachu. He was in love with her. Every time he thought about it, his heart felt tighter, warmer, fuzzier, things Ash hadn't felt before but he liked. But there was something else. A feeling of dread, anxiety...

It was a fear of rejection that made Ash want to think about anything else other than Serena. He realised his advice had always been to "go for it!" But when push came to shove, he realised exactly how hard "going for it" actually was.

The usually cheerful, happy-go-lucky, optimistic, and energetic Ash Ketchum was now depressed and downtrodden over a girl. It was never something Ash ever thought possible to happen to him. He hadn't felt like this before arriving in Kalos, not once. The whole idea seemed bizarre to him.

Ash stared out to the lake again, admiring the surrounding area. It was a beautiful scene. That had been one of the things Ash had learnt on his journeys - to enjoy the little things. This area, covered in natural beauty, was one of those things.

"Ash?"

Ash was surprised by the sudden mention of his name, and turned around quickly to see Serena stood at the foot of the rock he was on, looking up at him with worry in her eyes. The rock only meant Ash was higher by about two feet, but all the same, Ash offered her a hand up, which she accepted. She sat next to Ash as he began polishing Sligoo's Pokèball again. "What's up?" He asked her, looking at her.

"Um... Are you okay? You seem... Different." Serena asked, looking away through the corner of her eye, towards the lake.

"Different how?"

"Not in a good way. You seem a lot more... Down than usual. " Serena explained, nervousness apparent in her voice. "I'm worried about you. I haven't seen you like this since... Ever, honestly."

Ash smiled slightly, touched by her concern, "Its nothing. Just some stuff that's been on my mind is all." He said, using the same excuse he gave Pikachu not long ago, for the same reason of trying to reassure them.

"What stuff? Maybe I could help..." Serena pressed,gently as to not make Ash feel like she was prying. Blushing, she slowly and gently placed her hand atop Ash's hand. Both parties faces went bright red.

Ash enjoyed the feeling of Serena's hand atop his. It was warm, and comforting. Just by the one notion, Ash felt much of his stress and anxiety simply melt away. Yet...He dared to go one further. He twisted his hand around, temporarily separating from Serena's hand, much to her immediate regret, before he clasped her hand in full, intertwining their fingers. Her hand was warm. "You help me out all the time." Ash said. "Just by being near, you help me out..."

"Ash..."

Both of their faces were bright red, both in disbelief as to what was happening right now. Contrary to his previous emotions, Ash was nervous yet happy to be here, next to Serena like this. What happened next shocked both of them. They were only a few inches between them to start with, and with their hands interlocked, they had only gotten closes still. Both of them inched closer to the other, looking one another in the eye. The rest of the world simply disappeared around them, neither of them remembering that Clemont, Bonnie, and all their Pokèmon were directly behind them. Their eyes lids grew heavier, as they inched closer, their lips nearly a few centimetres away from -

A loud bang shattered the mood , followed by a scrap of metal that went flying towards them, hitting Ash in the side of the head, knocking him off the rock.

"Ash!"

Ash laid at the foot of the rock, on his back, with a throbbing graze on the side of his head. Swivels replaced his eyes. "S-Sheesh.. What hit me? Did Clemont invent something again?..."

Serena quickly glanced behind her, seeing that Clemont and Bonnies hair was in an Afro, and their faces covered in soot. Yep, he had invented something.

"And another machine goes boom..." Bonnie said, still a bit dizzy from the explosion, and covered in soot. " I guess that's the end of the get me-out-of-bed-amajig?"

Serena jumped down from the rock and knelt down beside Ash, who had a hand on the point of impact, and was sitting himself up. "Are you okay, Ash?!"

"Owwww... You know, science is amazing and everything... But I'm getting sick of explosions going off in my face, and then this when I'm no where near, I get smacked by the rouge shards. I'm starting to think science plain hates me." He said with a light chuckle, which he regretted, as the chuckle made the pain winch up again. "I'll be fine. This just stings a bit, that's all."

Serena blushed madly at the thought at what nearly happened. If it hadn't been for Clemont and his cursed inventions...

Ash thought the same thing. He sighed. If there was ever a case of 'wrong place, wrong time' it was defiantly now.

* * *

So, I'm trying to keep up with this whole weekly thing, and doing a kind of happyish chapter is not easy when depressed, as I've said before, but I'm still gonna try and make this thing as awwwy for you guys. Thanks a lot for the recent support, it's hugely appreciated, and let's keep it coming. Write a review to tell me what you thought, any improvements or ideas you may have for this story, I am open to criticism. I'm not sure when this will end, but I will say we are over the halfway mark.

Other than that, I'll hopefully see you in the next chapter! See you!


	8. Chapter 8

Keeping an ice pack kept on his cheek with his hand, Ash found himself in Serena's room while she, as she out it, took care of him.

Obviously, she meant the injury he had sustained not long ago, thanks to Clemont's machines blowing up, yet again, but the idea of Serena 'taking care' of Ash made him blush. The fact he was in a room Serena slept in made him blush further, though it faded when he began to wonder exactly when the hell he started thinking like Brock.

The actual injury from the explosion had only been minor. A nasty graze, and a cut, deep enough to be obvious, but not deep enough to draw blood. According to Serena, any additional pressure would cause it to open. It was only a small injury, one that would have healed by tomorrow, or even by the end of the day, and Ash had protested that he was fine, and he and his Pokèmon needed to carry on their training, when Clemont said he would take over their training for the day, much to the apparent fear of all of Ash's Pokèmon. Ash would have spoken up, but he had already been practically dragged halfway through the Pokèmon centres reception area before he could.

"Okay, here, I got you a drink." Serena said, entering the room with a glass of water. Ash took it and thanked her. "How's it feel?"

"It's really not bad at all, Serena. This isn't really necessary, I'm fine." Ash said, with a warm smile. He supposed he was happy that Serena cared about him enough that she would do all of this for him, but he also thought that she was taking things a bit too far. It was merely a cut, it wasn't like he broke anything.

Serena sighed, and looked to the ground. She sat on the bed, next to Ash. "I know it's not bad... But..."

Ash leaned closer to her, "But?..."

"... I just don't like seeing you hurt."

"I'm glad." Ash said, laughing "I'd be a bit upset if you did like seeing me hurt." Laughing stung his cheek, but he didn't let it bother him. He wanted her to not worry about him. He gave her his signature toothy grin, and again, while it stung, he didn't show it.

It seemed to work. Serena smiled faintly, and let out a small laugh. "Nice to see that you still have your wits about you."

Ash smiled. "Thanks. I'm glad you're so concerned about me but... I think you're a bit too concerned, if you ask me. A band- aid would have been fine."

Serena blushed while looking to the ground. It was only then when she realised how big a fuss she had made over basically nothing. Here she was, bringing her crush into her room, while she treated him like a patient in a hospital. She was beyond embarrassed. 'You idiot, Serena, of course he only needed a band- aid! What the heck did you think it was, and infected wound?'

" I'm really sorry."

"Hey now, what are you apologising for? This would have been worse if you hadn't done anything, you shouldn't apologise for nothing!" Ash said, putting his hand on Serena's shoulder, trying to comfort her.

She smiled. "I just wanted to make sure you were okay..."

"Don't be upset, Serena, you did help, and thank you."

They sat together for a while, in a comfortable silence. Words weren't needed, they understood. Both of them ,they learned on the other, and they both relied on the other, just like when they were just children in Pallet Town.

"Do,you think I can be a good Pokèmon performer?" Serena asked, out of the blue.

Ash stared at her for a few seconds. He noticed her expression. Her eyebrows were buried in, and her mouth was in the shape of a frown. Her eyes watered and her fists gripping into the clothing covering her thighs.

"Of course you can, Serena. I know you can." Ash said, smiling brightly with encouragement. He didn't even hesitate. Once he had registered the question, the words simply left his mouth on their own.

"How do you know? You've only seen a couple of performances... And I made a mockery of mine..." Serena said, he head dropping.

Ash sighed, and smiled, "Do you think I'm a good battler?"

Much like Ash, Serena , once having registered the question, answered immediately "Do I? Of course! You're an incredible trainer! Even though you lost, the first time I saw you battle, you were flawless! I hadn't seen such a battle!"

"Heh. You wouldn't think so if you saw my very first gym battle." Ash chucked.

"What do you mean?"

"First gym I ever went to was a rock type gym. I had only been traveling with Pikachu for maybe a week. Hard to think that around that time, Pikachu barely even liked me. We challenged the gym, and this crazy tough leader, Brock, he completely trashed me. My Pidgeotto and Pikachu got beaten so quickly. I actually gave up during the battle, because I didn't think I could win. After a while, I went back and challenged the gym again. Complicated story after that, but I technically won my battle, but I forfeited. Again, complicated. I got my gym badge after that. And the gym leader even joined me on my journey." Ash smiled at his memories, before turning to face Serena, "My point being, you failed. So what? That just means next times the charm. I believe In you, Serena. I know you can do this! "

Serena didn't say a word after that, instead she just hugged Ash again, almost tackling him down, with her head on his chest, and her arms wrapped around him.

Ash smiled and returned the hug. "You really seem to like your hugs today, huh?" He grinned, remembering her earlier hug.

"Only the ones with you." Serena responded with a whisper, but hiding her blush from her crush.

Ash allowed Serena to hug him as much as she wanted. He didn't mind at all. He liked it, in fact. Serena, on the other hand, reflected what she had heard the previous night. When Ash had vented his feelings about her to Pikachu. She had realised that night that she didn't want to hide her feelings from him anymore, especially because of how he felt about her, and how the uncertainty made him feel empty. Serena knew what that felt like. When she left Pallet Town, and Ash, behind, she was overcome with emptiness, sadness, loneliness. It wasn't a feeling she wished on anyone else, especially not Ash. She felt herself psych herself up. She was going to do it. Not just for her, but for Ash as well.

"Ash... I want to tell you something." She said, trying not to trip over her own words, biting her tongue when she wasn't talking out of sheer anxiety.

"Sure. What is it? Did I open my cut again, nurse?" Ash said, jokingly.

Serena smiled very faintly as she left the hug, and looked Ash in the eye. This was it. "Ash... Last night, I -"

They were cut off by a loud bang, and an even louder, yet more dulled down noise, shortly after. Looking towards the window, Ash and Serena saw the back on Hawlucha, pressed against the glass window, sent back flying by an explosion. For a second, it was almost comical, Hawluxha gave the shill ouster of an angel. For a second, Serena honestly wondered if God had sent an angel to stop her, but it had somehow smashed into a window. Hawlucha stuck to the glass in a daze, before slowly sliding down to the ground.

"What on -" Serena started, before she was cut off.

"Hawlucha!" Ash yelled, before jumping up and dashing out of the room, and apparently falling down half the staircase, judging by the amount of noise he made going down, headed to the yards he had left half an hour ago.

Serena opened the window to hear what was going on.

"Clemont, what's going on?" Ash yelled, helping up Hawlucha.

"Lu, cha cha lu lu cha!" Hawlucha shouted towards Clemont and Bunnelby, who were both either embarrassed or terrified.

"Y'see, I was trying to help you Pokèmon get stronger with one of my inventions designed to -" Clemont began to explain, before being cut off.

"Inventions, got it." Ash sighed, helping Hawlucha sit up correctly.

"But I didn't even tell you what happened!" Clemont pointed out.

"Clemont, it's your inventions. It either exploded or is malfunctioning." Ash sighed, still remembering his injury from a while ago.

Clemont sighed. He knew he couldn't argue with that. "Maybe I should call it a day..."

"Please do, I think that would be best." Ash said smiling, a sweat drop rolling down his forehead, chuckling lightly, along with the rest of his Pokèmon, whom looked relieved to see they wouldn't be subject to the same result Hawlucha had been.

Serena sighed. It figured. As soon as she had the courage, the place, the time, the mood and the plan to tell Ash the feelings that she had been holding in since she was young, something interrupted. She wondered if she would ever get the chance. Silently, she held her hands together, above her chest, close to her heart, and silently said "I love you, Ash."

There's this weeks chapter for you all. Sorry it's a bit short, but I want to keep this 'one chapter a week' thing going. I'm thinking of ending the story soon, but the thing is, I'm enjoying writing this a bit too much. My original plan was to end it when Ash and Serena got together, but now I think I may have a few chapters after their confession. Let me know what you think. Be sure to leave a review with any ideas, or anything you'd like to say about this chapter, or the story in particular, I do, in fact, read them all!

While im here, I'd just like to say - thank to all SO much for all the kind words about this story. I've seen posts on Tumblr, reviews, and received messages telling me how much they like the story. Thank you all so much for all the words of encouragement and motivation!

So, I will see you in the next chapter!


	9. Chapter 9

"Come on Hawlucha, on three. One, two, three!" Ash helped Hawlucha sit up against a tree after being propelled into a window by one of Clemont's inventions exploded... Again.

Having helped his injured Pokèmon, Ash debated on what he should do. Curiosity of what Serena had been about to say made him want to go back to her, but he'd feel guilty if he just left Hawlucha after that ordeal. But he felt guilty enough leaving Serena like that, but she would have to admit, it was a special circumstance. Ash sighed. He decided he should stick by Hawlucha, at least for a while.

"Hawlucha, cha ha. " Hawlucha said to Ash, indicating its thanks.

Ash smiled at his Pokèmon. "No problem, Hawlucha."

Clemont, whom was scratching his head and walking up towards Ash nervously, tried to avoid Hawlucha's gaze. Veins appeared on Hawlucha's head, and he was obviously annoyed with Clemont.

"Hey, uh, I just wanted to say sorry for... Earlier, Hawlucha, that was my fault." Clemont said, bowing, something he always seemed to do either out of apology or gratitude.

Hawlucha closed its eyes and looked away. Hawlucha had a strong sense of personal pride, and whenever it felt like it was damaged, even remotely, it took a while for those wounds to heal. While Hawlucha was still very clearly annoyed with Clemont, he had decided to tolerate the action. It had been an accident after all, but then again, that didn't exactly help mend Hawlucha's pride.

"If Hawlucha was really mad, I think we'd know. You remember the fight with Froakie before it evolved, Clemont?" Ash said, sweat dropping at Hawlucha's current actions, and smiling at the memory, which at the time had been bitter, but was now something they could laugh about. "Having said that, maybe you should put the tools away for a few days. You haven't exactly been having a lot of luck this week especially."

Of course, that much was a given. Clemont had basically been third - wheeling for both Ash and Serena for the past few days, and while it had been out of his own volition, it was amazing how much stress keeping a few secrets could be. Clemont wasn't used to keeping secrets, he never had been, but now he had to lie to his friends faces on a daily basis to keep the promise to the other.

"Yeah, yeah, you're right. Maybe I should start making a plan for these inventions of mine. Like Blueprints and things like that. I usually just throw whatever together with what I have." Clemont admitted sheepishly.

"Yeah, maybe." Ash said with a chuckle in his voice, before he brought the tone down. "I did want to ask you to stop trying to invent things for a while for a more personal reason too."

"Do you honestly have such little faith in my inventing abilities that you felt the need to ask me to stop inventing things so you could go about your business? Just because my inventions may ... Occasionally... Blow up, you automatically assume they'll blow up again?" Clemont said with both a sigh and a hint of sarcasm.

"Since that dance machine in Shalor City, I've been a bit more weary, if you noticed." Ash said with some laughter.

"So, what's this personal reason of yours?" Clemont asked on a more serious note, switching the topic back to Ash.

Ash dragged Clemont over to the side, away from Hawlucha and the rest of his Pokèmon, and from any other prying ears.

"I... I can't keep this a secret anymore. Serena deserves to know how I feel about her. I owe her that much. She's been there for me since we were kids, and I've been there for her. I have to be honest with her." Ash said, in a much more serious note than usual. "And the thing is, even If I could keep it a secret... I wouldn't want to anymore."

"...Are you afraid?" Clemont asked. The tone of the question kind of shocked Ash. The truth was he was more nervous than anything else. This was something he had wanted to do for a long time now, but had never really given it any proper consideration. It was only recently that he began to feel like he had an obligation to tell her, not only for himself, but for her sakes too. This felt like his only chance to fill the hole in his heart where he felt empty. He kind of felt bad for doing it for such selfish reasons, and the thought of it just being for himself almost scared him into not doing it. Had he even considered how Serena felt about him? Could this wreck the relationship they have right now? Or could it be the best thing he ever did? Conflicting emotions had been fighting inside his brain and his heart for a while. It took some serious consideration before he came to a decision. And even when he had, he was still full of doubt. He had no real idea how this was going to go. That was what frightened him.

"I'd question anyone who wouldn't be if they were gonna do what I'm gonna do. Yeah, kinda. Well, nervous would probably be the better word." Ash admitted.

"That's good." Clemont commented.

"Whys that?" Ash asked.

"That proves you're not an idiot."

Ash smiled at that remark. Trust Clemont to make him feel better when he felt lame about himself.

"So, when do you plan to tell her? " Clemont asked. "So I can keep Bonnie out of the way. I doubt the mood would be helped by her jumping all over the place."

Ash sighed. "Tonight. I'm doing it tonight."

Serena gazed out the window, watching everything happen. Her head rested in her hands, staring at the events going on below, and eventually into empty space. She didn't even particularly remember what she was window for, and instead just stared into the sky.

She had been about to do it. She had come so close. Twice today alone. Here, in this room, she had come so close to telling Ash how she felt, but was interrupted by one of Clemont's inventions exploding once again. Serena couldn't decide if she was more angry at Clemont, amused by the whole situation, depressed at the missed opportunity, or upset that Ash ran out on her. It was a mixture of all of them, defiantly, but she couldn't decide which one she was more.

The depression that Serena felt now wasn't new. It had followed her for years, at her every turn. Every night, she would lay in bed, and her thoughts would always turn to Ash, now matter how hard she tried to think about something else, anything else. Before she left her home, she had a feeling of loneliness that came with her Rhyhorn racing obsessed mother being one of the few people she had to talk to, whom she spent a lot of time avoiding, in order to avoid racing practice. When she was sent to camp in Kanto, and met Ash, that feeling disappeared. Gone, completely. She was more than happy. But then she had to leave. The loneliness that followed that was greater than when she arrived. She spent days just locked in her room, refusing to talk, even refusing to eat. She had missed Ash enormously during this time.

Now she was here. With him. But she didn't feel less lonely. Sometimes, she felt more lonely still. Her love for him had grown from a mild crush during camp, to a heavy crush when they met again, to a feeling of purer love now. Pure, unparalleled love. And she knew now, Ash felt the same way, after what she had overheard the previous night.

But still they were apart. They were close, but so apart.

She wanted to be next to him. To be there when he was happy, when he was sad, when he was confident and upset. She wanted to be there for him. She wanted to be his. But she couldn't. Because she just couldn't admit it. The only thing holding her back was herself.

Serena felt a wetness on her cheek, which ran down to her hands. Tears had flown from her eyes. She had been crying and hasn't even noticed it. She wiped her eyes clear of any tears there were, thankful Ash hadn't been in the same room as her at the time.

She sighed. "I can't go on like this. I can't..."

There was only one thing she could do. The thought of doing what she was going to do honestly terrified her, but the alternative was wasting away into depression. Not only did she owe it to both herself and her Pokémon to not end up like that, she owed it to Ash. She knew how he felt. He didn't know how she felt. It was only fair. She know that logically, she had nothing to fear. If she confessed, she knew Ash loved her, so he would be happy, surely?

But yet... Part of her always asked her 'what if you're wrong?' And that part was always the loudest part, the part that she most listened to. No matter how illogical, or how little it made sense, how unlikely it seemed, that part was always there.

Serena shook her head and slapped her cheeks with both hands. She had to push it away this time. For Ash.

She would tell him. She would confess her love for him. The love she had held for years now, and the love she wanted Ash to know she had for him.

She would do it tonight.

"Alright everyone, that's enough for today, good work everyone!" Ash said, putting an end to the days training. The Pokèmon were visibly relieved to see that this was the end of the training today.

Ash was glad the training was over today too. His Pokémon had improved their skills a lot today. Sliggoo had put up a strong match against Frogadier, which resulted in Sliggoo's victory, much to the surprise of everyone, including Sliggoo. Ash felt like he had achieved something with the training today, which was, at the end of the day, all he could really ask for.

Supper was served, eaten, for both the people and the Pokémon, followed by a while of relaxing before they headed off to sleep. It had almost become a little tradition for the group, and while it wasn't the most exciting of traditions, it was one they all enjoyed nonetheless.

Ash, Serena, Clemont and Bonnie all sat around their table in a comfortable silence. They didn't really have a lot to talk about. Not much had happened. The only thing they spoke about was their plans for tomorrow.

"So, we're finally leaving this area. We follow this route here and we'll be in the next town in a few days." Clemont explained, pointing at a map for reference.

"Sounds good to me." Ash nodded. Serena and Bonnie also voiced their support of the plan.

"Hey Clemont, look over there!" Bonnie said excitedly, pointing out towards the lake, practically jumping off and running towards it.

"Whuh? Hey, Bonnie, get back here!" Clemont called after his sister, jogging at his usual slow pace after her.

This left Ash and Serena sat alone together in a slightly awkward silence. Each of the, waited for the other to say something.

"Hey Serena-" "Ash, I-"

Both of them cut the other off, resulting in an awkward silence once again. Ash was the first one to recover and start talking again.

"Sorry uh, you go first." Ash apologised, scratching the back of his head.

"It's nothing, I uh..." Serena began, but trailed off.

"...Serena, I've got something I want to tell you." Ash said, biting his bottom lip.

"Huh?..."

Ash was about to do it, when he noticed Clemont and Serena walking back towards them. "Listen, can you meet me back here later tonight? It's kind of private..."

Serena nodded "okay... The truth is, I want to talk to you about something too then."

"Sorry about that, guys. Bonnie thought she saw a Skrelp in the water." Clemont sighed as he sat down again. "It was just a few leaves and vegetation that looked like Kelp."

"They looked really similar!" Bonnie said.

"That's kind of the point. It's meant to camouflage them." Clemont sighed again.

Ash and Serena chuckled at their small fit, but inside, both of them were nervous as anything.

Regardless of how it went, tonight was going to change their lives.

* * *

So there we have it guys, the penultimate chapter to the confession. Thanks a lot for the feedback from last chapter,I'm decided that I will keep this story going for a while after the confession.

Also, a shout out to Sekretagentmans from Tumblr. You know who you are. Believe it's me now, buddy? ; ) Glad you like the story so much.

At any rate, let me know what you thought, and any ideas you may have, or anything you'd like to say in the reviews! I'll see you all next time guys! See ya!


	10. Chapter 10

"Oh man, this was a bad idea..." Ash said with a nervous sigh.

Leaning against a tree, he looked out to the lake that the Pokémon centre had a great view of. In the moonlight, it sparkled and shimmered, and the stars and the moon reflected on its surface. Ash smiled at this natural sight of beauty. It was one of his traveling rules - enjoy the little things. Traveling rules 1 through 25 included training or winning battles.

Ash had never been one to back down. It was a rare sight to see Ash forfeit anything he ever did in anything, and he always did so with very good reason, such as preventing his Pokémon from being harmed. He had always gone on until the bitter end.

Now however, he was beginning to have second thoughts about what he was doing here. He had arranged to meet Serena here in a few minutes, and he planned to confess to her. He had gone through six regions, fought countless battles, caught multiple Pokémon, been in dangerous situation after dangerous situation, and had nearly died on occasion. That kind of stuff didn't affect him, yet he was afraid of telling a girl that he liked her. He couldn't decide if he was either a dense moron, or didn't have his priorities straight.

He hadn't even brought Pikachu along with him. He was still asleep in Ash room. This has been one of the few times Ash had been tempted to put Pikachu back in his Pokéball, at least for a while, out of concern of what was going to happen here tonight. He knew Pikachu could sense how he felt, and depending on how tonight went, he could sense Ash's pure despair. He knew Pikachu worried about him, just like he worried about Pikachu. Forcing him into his Pokéball might avoid some harsher issues later down the line. But no, he decided he would leave Pikachu alone to sleep. He probably wouldn't forgive Ash if he made him return anyway.

Midnight rapidly approached, but Ash found it was crawling up on him slowly. This was one of the times that time seemed to stretch out for such a long time over such a short period of time. Ten seconds felt like minutes. Ash wasn't new to nerves. He had felt nervous for Gym battles, league matches, tournament battles, and the likes. But that came with a sense of excitement too. This felt more like dread.

"Ash?..."

Ash turned his head quickly, seeing Serena stood there. She had arrived. Her sudden appearance made Ash jump for a second, but when he realised it was her, he calmed down quickly.

"Oh, hey. Serena." Ash replied to her. Though it wasn't the best time to realise, he noticed how cute she was right now. He had no idea what made him notice this now.

"You okay?"

"Yeah. I'm fine. Just... Checking out the view." Ash said, pointing out the view that stood in front of them.

Serena turned to see the sight for herself. She admitted, it was quite the beautiful piece of scenery. The way the water reflected and shimmered the shape of the moon and stars above.

Inside, she was also very nervous about her own plans. She was ready to tell him, but she felt like she knew what this meeting was about to begin with. She wasn't sure if she should make the first move, or if she should wait on Ash, if this even was what the meeting was for. She knew she could be getting excited and expecting nothing, and that she should move first... But the part of her that still feared rejection was still there.

This was everything she ever wanted. Her crush, her love, the chance to be his, to not feel lonely anymore, was right here. The chance was staring her in the face.

"It's a... Pretty view, isn't it?" She nodded in agreement. For some reason, it reminded her of a showcase she once saw. She couldn't remember anything else about the showcase. The performer, the Pokémon they used, how old she was when she saw it, nothing. She only remembered the end result, which was a testament to the lasting effect it had had on her. This view however, was different. It was more beautiful, and she knew that she wouldn't ever forget this sight.

"So..." Ash said, trailing off his words before continuing, "what did you want to talk about?"

"I thought you wanted to talk to me about something?"

"You also said you wanted to talk to me. We both have something to say"

A short awkward silence fell, before Serena spoke up.

"Well, who goes first?"

"Uh... You. You can go first, Serena." He was trying to be polite, but he felt like he had pushed the subject onto her too quickly.

Serena sighed and turned to face Ash. "I... I just wanted to say thanks... For helping me out. With the showcase, and the reassurance... And the hugs..." Serena blushed at that last one. That was one of her favourites. "It just... It means a lot."

Ash smiled lightly, the corners of his lips curving upwards slightly "You know you don't need to thank me. I didn't do it for thanks. I did it... Cause I just wanted to help you out is all. "

Serena felt her chest beat harder. She came close to panicking, but kept her composure. This had to be it. If she didn't do this now, she would never be able to do it. She had to do it. "Ash... I-"

Ash spoke up, quite loudly, lowering his voice towards the end of the sentence "Serena, I need to tell you something. And I need to do it now, while I still have the nerve."

Serena stopped what she was saying instantly, her focus was purely on Ash. "Yeah... Sure, sorry. Go ahead..."

Ash took a deep breath "Serena, I've known you for a long time. A real long time. Since we met at camp, and I'm so happy we met there. And I know you really well. I know what you're like. You're a kind, gentle person. And I like that. I'm glad your my friend."

Serena blushed dark Crimson at this. But Ash hasn't even begun yet.

"Look... The reason I asked you to come here tonight is because... I needed to tell you... Over the past few months, I haven't been able to look at you the same way. There's something different about you. At first I didn't know what... But, then... After a while, it all just added up and came together. You're a smart person, you're nice, you've always put everything into what you do, and you never give up. And I... Admire that. I admire that about you... But it's... More than that now."

Serena didn't interrupt. She simply stood there, her jaw dropped slightly, eyes widened, staring in disbelief that this was actually happening.

"... I... I don't know how to say it..." Ash said, with a hesitant sigh. He knew what he wanted to say, but he couldn't formulate the words or put them in the right order. He was somehow able to forulate complex and unorthodox strategies in the middle of a battle, but unable to put the words 'I like you' into a comprehensible sentence. The thing about it was, Ash didn't want to be as cliche as that. Serena meant more to him than something like that. Though maybe it would have been easier. A million thoughts entered his head at the same time.

A small quiet fell upon them once again, neither of them really knowing what to say, until Serena found the words she needed to tell him.

"... Ash... I wanted to say something to you too... Maybe it'll help you find the right words..." Serena said, joining her hands together, and placing them above her chest, where her heart was located.

"Actually, I've been wanting to tell you for a long time now. A really long time. Years even... The first time I ever met you, you helped me in the forest at camp... In the camp, you were one of my only real friends there, and the only other friends I had there were the ones you helped me make... After I came back to Kalos, I wasn't happy. I hated it back here. And it wasn't how my mother acted that made me sad, or even the forced Ryhorn racing practice that meant I wasn't happy. I could manage that. What made me upset was that... You... You weren't there anymore."

Ash felt his cheeks redden. "Huh?..."

"There were times I didn't even eat, because I felt so horrible, knowing how far apart we were... But when I saw you on TV... That made me begin my journey. To find you... Because I wanted to see you again... Because I'm never happy when I'm not around you!"

Looking closely at Serena, Ash saw tears form in Serena's eyes, tears out of both upset, frustration and nervousness, but she didn't stop talking. She was determined now. This was it. Now or never.

"Ash... I like you, okay?... I really, really like you... Not just as a friend... As in, I don't want you to leave Kalos yet, but when you do, I want to be there, right next to you, by your side, and to stay by your side until the day my life ends! I love you!"

Serena had finally said it. For a moment, she stared at the ground in utter shock, in disbelief at what she had said. She knew how Ash felt, but that didn't make it any easier. In some ways, it made it worse.

Ash stared right at Serena, eyes wide in surprise. He couldn't even believe what he had heard. 'She likes me?... Loves me?...' Of course, he had come here to confess himself, but he hadn't expected her to beat him to it.

"I..." Ash tried to speak, but that was all that came out.

After Serena's blush had calmed, she faced Ash again. His dumbfounded face amused her slightly, and made her giggle a little. "It's okay... I... Know how you feel."

Now it was Ash's turn to blush. "Huh? When the heck did you figure that out?"

"Um... I may have accidentally heard you... Out here last night..." Serena said. This was what worried her. Now what would he think about her? Wouldn't he find her weird, listening to him talk to Pikachu? Wasn't that stalkerish?

"Oh... Ah hah hah hah..." Ash chuckled, relieved by the whole situation. He had been worried she had the wrong idea, that he didn't like her.

Slowly, he walked over to Serena, who was biting her lower lip, looking down to the ground, but her pupils were watching Ash as he walked over. Swiftly, Ash pulled Serena into a warm embrace, holding her tightly in his arms. Serena gasped at his movement, but didn't resist in any way, rather, she welcomed it.

"Every word you heard me say last night was true, Serena. I do like... Love, you." Ash finally confessed. When Serena heard those words, her own heart skipped a couple of beats. "I... Didn't want to just say that though... You deserved a more...whats the word... Poetic?... Confession... I just wanted to show you... You mean more to me than just three words... I wanted it to be a -" Ash would have continued, but he was cut off by Serena tightening her grip on him.

"They're enough... Those three words... They're more than enough..." Ash heard Serena sniffling then, indicating that she was crying. Tears of joy, apparently. "I was... I was so worried that you'd think I was weird, or not like me anymore when I told you I heard you talking last night!"

Ash smiled, and held Serena closer, "Serena... You could crush me a thousand times over, and I'd still love and forgive you. You don't need to worry about something that trivial..."

They stood there for a while. Words just weren't needed now. They were both just happy like this. They silently smiled, ash Ash held Serena in his arms, something both of them had wanted for a long time.

They separated after a while, and Ash looked Serena in the eyes, and she looked back. "Serena... Will you... Stay with me?"

Serena smiled, smugly for a second, raising an eyebrow. "Is this your way of asking me to be your girlfriend?"

Ash smiled back. "Maybe it is."

Serena began tearing up again out of sheer happiness. This was everything she had wanted since meeting him, and now it was happening. She practically tackled him with another massive hug, nearly causing both of them to fall over. "I'll stay with you until the end, Ash!"

Ash grinned and laughed, hugging his new girlfriend. Out of everything he had seen and felt, been through and experienced on his journey, this had to be, by a country mile, the best thing that had happened to him.

* * *

And there we have them together at last 3 I just got over a pretty bad breakup recently, to the point we aren't even on speaking terms (in my defence, she's the one who won't talk to me) , but now that I'm over it, I can write all the fluffy crap ^_^ It's awesome! I'll be carrying on with the story for a while, seeing as literally every person who responded said they wanted me to carry it on, so, we're gonna do that. I have no clue when it'll end now, but, I promise you, I will carry on doing this to the best of my ability! I hope you enjoyed, and I'll see you next time! See ya!


	11. Chapter 11

"No way! This is way too cute! Awwee!"

The news that the whole group, Pokémon and all, had received the following morning came as a shock. A welcome shock, and one that had been expected for a while now, but a shock nonetheless.

The morning had began with Ash and Serena waking up in their separate rooms, and meeting up, primarily to make completely sure they hadn't just been dreaming what had been the best nights of their lives so far, and secondarily to figure out how best to let the rest of the group know. Hiding that they liked the other was one thing, but if they actually wanted to enjoy their time together, they had to let their friends know. Aside from it being just basic good manners, they had no intentions of hiding away every other night just to be together. It had also been one of the first times since their journey together began, that Ash had woken up before Pikachu, whom had sensed it and woken up himself, just in time to see Ash walk out the room. If Pikachu hadn't been concerned to say the least before, he was now.

"So..." Ash had asked, rolling his eyes around the room before focusing on Serena again "How are we gonna do this?"

"Good question. We could play a little game with them~!" Serena had replied, with a smile from ear to ear on her face.

"Uh, what?" Ash had asked, a little surprised. He had expected the conversation to not take a turn in tricking Clemont and Bonnie. He had heard the rumour that love made you do weird stuff, but this hadn't exactly been what he had had in mind.

Serena had burst out into a fit of stifled giggles when an idea had popped into her head, which made Ash sweat drop. Whatever her idea was, it couldn't be good.

"What do you think of this idea?" Serena said after explaining her plan to Ash, with a huge grin on her face.

Ash blushed, smiled and let out a humoured sighed. "You like playing games with them, don't you?" Under any other circumstance, he would have probably not done it, but seeing her smile persuaded him. If he could see that smile again, and if he could be the one to help cause it, he would gladly go through with any one of Serena's plans.

So, there they were, sat around the breakfast table. Ash and Serena sat next to each other, a lot closer than normal, but no one noticed. Pikachu was sat on the table with Bonnies Deddene, eating it's breakfast next to it. Unusually, they had spoken a lot during breakfast, which wasn't normal do them, where they were usually quiet as was such with the majority of their mornings. The only person who usually had any energy was Bonnie, while Ash, Serena and Clemont were just about always too tired to really speak until they had eaten. Today was different though. Ash and Serena had their plan... Well, Serena had her plan, Ash was basically just along for the ride. They had barely even been together for, all added up together, a few hours, but the two of them felt closer to each other than couples who had been together for months and months. It filled them with energy just being next to each other. And Clemont, for once, had been able to get a good nights sleep for the first time in quite a while. He had been helping both of his friends try and confessing to the other, and, while nervous about the result, he was glad Ash said he was going to tell Serena, as it had taken a large amount of emotional stress off of him, letting him get a good rest.

After they had eaten, Serena decided to put her plan into action. She gave Ash a smile, one similar to the ones she had given him the night before. That was the signal. Ash sighed lightly. She really did seem to enjoy this, in a way he hadn't noticed before. Maybe it was because of what happened last night. The thought of that made him smile faintly.

"Hey, Clemont, Bonnie, I've got something I want to show you both" Serena told them with a grin across her face.

"What is it, Serena?" Bonnie leaned in, clearly interested in what she way saying.

Clemont simply scratched his head while quizzically tilting his head.

Ash gave an embarrassed sigh. Serena giggled as she grabbed ahold of Ash's hand from underneath the table, and intwined their fingers. This was the first time they had done this as a couple, and like before, Serena noticed it felt warm. She then took Ash's hand and brought them out from under the table, making it visible to their group. Serena had a large, happy grin on her face, with a red tint of blush on her face, but really, she was just so happy right now. She felt untouchable, and was so happy that she was holding Ash's hand.

Ash was unusually shy, yet still revealed his trademark toothy grin. With his free hand, he was scratching his cheek, showing he was slightly nervous, more than Serena, not out of worry as to what everyone would think, but because he was way out of his comfort zone with this sort of thing.

The group stared at this for a few seconds, before it clicked what it actually meant. Bonnie related first, by yelling you loud, "No way! This is way too cute! Awwee!", before running over to Serena and hugging her, seemingly to congratulate her.

"I had a feeling this was coming." Clemont said, with a partial sigh of relief for both of them, and happy for the two of them as well. Both Ash and Serena nodded at him, as they both assumed he was talking to them.

Clemont smiled at the both of them again. He had to admit, they looked good together. He had thought as much when he saw how the two of them interacted. He was honestly glad they had made it official. He was happy for them. Not to mention the emotional stress it took off of him.

Pikachu seemed very happy as well. Not only had he taken a liking to Serena, he was, above all, relieved to know that Ash's odd behaviour as of late was all due to this, and not some major issue. Not to mention that he was incredibly happy for his trainer, a sentiment which was shared with the rest of the Pokèmon.

Soon, the conversation turned away from the two of them, and went over to their next route, and where they were traveling to next. The group of friends crowded around a map laid out on the table, showing all the routes and pathways in the Kalos region.

"If we want to get to Lumious City as soon as possible, we could cut through this forest here, but it has a reputation of being... Mysterious." Clemont explained, trailing his finger along the route.

"What do you mean by mysterious?" Ash asked, raising a quizzical eyebrow.

"Strange sightings, noises, and people disappearing for days at a time, and when they show up again, they say their either were held prisoner for days, by what they don't know, or they simply don't remember any of it. " Clemont explained, a look of seriousness in his eyes. "It's more than likely to be more Trevenant, or other Ghost type Pokémon. In fact, there have been reports of Ghost types showing up more frequently in the first, so the majority think that's it, but still..."

Serena and Bonnie both shivered. This didn't sound like a place either of them wanted to go.

Ash noticed this, and asked Clemont, "Okay, is there any way around it?"

Clemont studied the map closely for a few seconds. "We could follow the main road, or go through the mountains. Going through the mountains might be dangerous though, and following the roads that are next to the forest could take us maybe a week longer, if we're lucky."

Ash sighed and bit the inside of his cheek while he thought about it. Normally he would have suggested carting right through the forest, and just let whatever happened happen, but for whatever reason, he felt like that was a bad idea, especially seeing how Serena was clearly nervous about the forest idea. Knowing her, she'd be more happy going along the roadways, which made Ash impartial to it.

"Maybe we should have a vote, and majority wins." Clemont suggested.

Ash nodded. That seemed fair, however, "Well, I'm good whichever way. You guys vote on it."

The vote went two for the road, one for the mountains. Serena and Clemont had voted for following the road path, as it was the safer option, whereas Bonnie had wanted to go climbing in the mountains, a vote which had surprised no one.

"Then it's decided." Clemont announced, clearing the table and stuffing the map into his backpack. "We'll stick close to the roads. Threw a pathway that is further way from them, but follows the route, so we won't be next to the noise all the time. It'll be just like normal, only we'll be shadowing the road ways."

"Sounds good to me." Ash said, nodding with the plan. He would have liked to get to Lumious as quickly as possible, but he was more concerned about Serena now more than anything. She wanted to go the long way round, so he'd stick with her on the long way round.

Clearing all of their things away, organising their belongings, returning their Pokémon to their Pokéballs, the group finally got ready to leave the Pokémon centre they had been staying at for quite a while now. Ash, who was finishing clearing up his things and rearranging his gear, took a final look out his window. Last night had provided him with more joy than he could honestly remember in a long time. Despite all the time he had lost in staying here for this long, he had absolutely no regrets, nor even any remorse, or wished anything was different. Things were perfect, just the way there were now.

"Ash?"

He turned to see his new girlfriend, Serena, stood there waiting for him with a big smile on her face which warmed Ash's heart. He smiled back at her. Things really were perfect the way they were now.

"Yeah, I'll be down in a second." He told her, before looking out of the window again, to where it all happened last night. "We've been here a long time, haven't we?"

Serena stood next to him, also looking over the area they had spent the last few days. "Yeah, we have." She said In agreement.

"I don't regret it though. At all." Ash told her with a warm smile on his face.

"Whys that?"

"'Cause then I might not have you here right now. I'm happy with how things turned out."

Serena gave Ash a huge grin before hugging him tightly. She didn't care how long they had been together, or how they were acting at this point. Years of holding a crush for him, followed by months of being in love with him, and now, finally being his girlfriend, Serena had affection to spare, she took no shame in showing it.

"Hey, Ash... can you do something for me?"She asked, smiling at the thought of her own request.

"What is it?" Ash asked.

"Could you... Take your gloves off?"

Ash looked down at the gloves he wore practically every day. He didn't even have an idea why she would ask him that, but on the flip side, it was for her, so he didn't really care. After hesitating for a second, he slowly answered, "Okay then... I guess?" He said, whitest unfastening the Velcro that kept the glove in place around his wrists, and placing them in his pockets.

Serena grabbed a hold of Ash's right arm, hugging it tightly, and grabbed ahold of his hand, intertwining their fingers, and gripping hold tightly. She then rested her head on his shoulders. "Mm...Can we walk like this?"

Ash went a shade of red, but also smiled uncontrollably. "You're really enjoying this, aren't you?"

Serena gave him a small sarcastic huff. "Shush now. I've had a crush on you for years, I'm going to enjoy this."

Ash chuckled before replying. "Hey, I didn't say no."

Serena's face went back to the bright smile from before. Ash smiled right back at her. He meant what he had said from before. He wouldn't change anything for this.

The two left the room and rejoined their friends, waiting for them in the lobby. The two had received a couple of comments about their hand holding, and that Serena was basically latched onto Ash's arm, which had embarrassed the two, and made the two siblings laugh, before they set off, carrying on their adventure.

The roadway was peaceful, surprisingly. On the map, the group had assumed that it was a motorway type deal, but it was a single roadway, the kind Ash had traveled down countless times during his journeys - the kind in which hardly any cars went down at all.

Despite all of this, Ash and Serena still found themselves positively ecstatic about the future. Not only had one of their greatest wishes come true, but they now could only see the future as being nothing but incredible.

"Alright! As soon as we get down this route, it's on to my next gym battle!" Ash declared, determined to win his next gym badge, and beat every gym leader up until he was finally at the Kalos league, and until he won.

"And my next showcase!" Serena added in, more confident now than ever before. With Ash's teaching from the past few days, and with him cheering her on now, there was no way that she was going to loose again!

"You know, you can feel free to stop crushing my arm any time now, Serena. I kind of lost all feeling in it." Ash said, with a pale face.

Serena loosened her grip on his arm, but still held tightly. "I'm not letting go of this arm until we have to sleep In separate tents. I'm having way too much fun!"

Ash smiled at his girlfriend. He only had one regret. That he hadn't told her he liked her sooner. He could have been enjoying his whole journey like this. But that didn't matter. He was with her now. That's all that mattered.

"Your next showcase is In the town before Lumiose, isn't it?" Ash asked, looking down at Serena's head, still resting on his shoulders as they walked.

"That's right... Hey Ash?" Serena said, looking up at Ash, to look him in the eyes.

"Yeah?"

"Be honest with me..."

"Okay..."

"Do you think I can win? I mean. Do you think I improved enough to win?" She asked, concern evident in her voice.

Ash saw the concern in her eyes as they shimmered. Without even thinking, he used his other hand to brush her hair out of her eyes, and said to her "I know you can do it, Serena. I just know you can. You've improved so much, and I'll always be there to cheer you on,and help you if you need it, just like you are with can do it. I know you can."

Serena looked into her boyfriends eyes and snuggled her heard into his neck, Thank you. With you cheering me on, I can't loose."

"If you two lovebirds are done back there..." Bonnie called back to the two, who blushed and immediately focused all their attention on the two Lumious Siblings. Bonnie giggled before looking at her elder brother.

"Thanks Bonnie." Clemont said to his sister before addressing Ash and Serena "According to the map, we're going to have to take a rest here. The next leg of the journey looks a bit dangerous, and it recommends that travellers should make sure they're fully prepared for anything on this route, and seeing as the sun is setting, I think we should set up camp for the night, so we can be fully energised and aware."

"That sounds like a good idea to me." Ash said, agreeing with Clemont's plan.

Clemont nodded, looking around the surrounding area. The forest brush was plentiful, and, between the grass and the tree line, was a long but narrow river, yet wide enough for several Water Type Pokémon to make their homes here. "We should be able to get some fresh water by boiling some from this lake. And all this vegetation will provide us with plenty of fuel for a campfire."

"Alright then, let's make our base here!" Serena agreed with Ash, finally letting go of his arm to see the Pokémon that lived in the stream. Tympole mostly, and a couple of Stunfisk, along with a small school of Wooper. "Hey, Bonnie, check out all these cool Pokémon!"

Bonnie went over to see the Pokémon with Serena, eager to see what kinds of Pokémon there were. seeing the Tympole, she commented on how they were cute, a sentiment which Serena didn't fully agree with, but chuckled along nonetheless.

Ash and Clemont smiled as their companions laughed at all the Pokémon they were seeing.

"Hey, Serena, make sure Bonnie doesn't fall in for me please!" Clemont yelled, which got him a dirty look from Bonnie, and a nod from Serena. Clemont then turned to Ash while unloading the things from his backpack. "Here, give me a hand with this. We'll let those two hang out over there while we set up."

"Sure" Ash knelt down by Clemont, helping his unload everything that was in his backpack. "Thanks, by the way. For what you did with Serena for me. I have no idea what you did, but it worked out beyond perfectly."

"It's no problem." Clemont said with a grin. "Although, you still owe me."

"One gym battle that'll send shockwaves throughout Lumious City, coming right up!" Ash grinned back at his blonde friend. "But first things first, we're going to Serena's next showcase. "

"Eager to see how she'll do?"

"Yeah! I've helped her out a lot with it, and I can see myself doing that a lot in the foreseeable future." Ash smiled "I can't wait to see the full thing done on stage."

"All she was lacking in her last performance was some more confidence in her abilities. But she's improved massively since her last attempt. She'll do fine, just as long as she doesn't panic." Clemont said.

"Serena will do great. I'm sure of it." Ash told Clemont. "After all, we're traveling with the next Kalos Queen."

That night, the group sat around their campfire, with their bowls of hot soup, talking and discussing their next plans.

"So, this is it, right, Serena? Forestcove town? That's where you're next showcase is?" Ash asked, leaning over her shoulder to get a better look at the advertisement she had gotten. It had a pink background, with several performers and their Pokémon, including Arcainine, Swellow and Furfrou.

"Yeah. It's surrounded on all sides by forest, and it makes all of its buildings from the wood from the trees surrounding it." Serena explained.

"Just a shame the forest they're surrounded by is apparently haunted." Ash muttered.

He and Serena were sat next to each other on one side of the campfire, while Clemont and Bonnie were sat on the other. Ash and Serena were noticeably sat closer together.

Serena shuddered a little. She was certain it was just Ghost type Pokémon playing pranks on the town. Well, 90% certain.

After the group had finished their soup, they began to change into their sleepwear, Clemont approached Ash and Serena.

"Hey, uh, Serena, Bonnie says she wants me to sleep with her tonight." He said, scratching his head. "She said she had a bad dream last night, and she wants me there so nothing bad happens to her."

"Oh." Serena said In response. She couldn't help but feel a little upset that Bonnie would say that. But then it clicked to her. "Well, where am I supposed to sleep?"

Clemont looked at both Ash and Serena, who then looked at each other, blushed, then looked back at Clemont. "Well... You two are together now..."

"Why do I get the feeling this is what she was after to start with?" Ash sighed, amused.

"Probably, but you know how she is. She isn't gonna budge now." Clemont sighed.

Ash looked at Serena and blushed. "Well... I don't mind. Besides, it's not like we have any other choice."

Serena went crimson red and began to stutter. "Um... I uh... I don't... I don't mind... It's... Just you and uh..."

"Awesome, so, I guess I'll see you guys in the morning." Clemont said, turning around and entering his sisters tent, leaving Ash and Serena alone, to apparently sleep together.

They laid down on the only mattress they had, covered themselves in the only duvet they had, and remained that way for a while. Neither of them knew what to say. Both of them were secretly ecstatic, but they were also incredibly nervous. They could feel the heat coming from the other, which made the duvet a blanket of warmth. Pikachu was sat near Ash's head, already asleep.

"...This... Is... Kinda nice..." Serena finally said, looking at Ash with a crimson red blush. "I've... Always sort of... Wanted to spend a night like this... Next to you..."

Ash's turn to blush came, before smiling warmly. "Yeah... It is... Maybe we should make it a regular thing."

Ash felt Serena edge closer towards him. "I'd.. Like that..."

Ash looked into her eyes, and said to her, "I'm not sure if this would be considered saying too much seeing as we just got together... But you are the most important thing in my life right now, Serena. And I'm glad. Glad I came here, to Kalos. I love you, Serena."

Serena move up and hugged Ash tightly, tears of joy in her eyes. "Oh Ash... I love you too... More than you'll ever know..."

Ash chuckled. "I've only got the rest of my life to find out."

Serena held onto him tighter. "Can we.. Sleep like this?"

Ash smiled, and wrapped his arms around Serena's waist, bringing her closer to him. "I wouldn't want to any other way."

* * *

And there's the next chapter for ya'll guys! I'm loving writing this, so much! But I'd like to suggest a new fanfic series I'd like to do, called "Looks don't matter" , which would revolve around Serena wondering if Ash judges by appearance, and trying to alter herself out of her phobia of him doing so. What do we think of that, guys?

I've gone for the full fluff because those two are simply too cute together. I actually love them as a ship, they're bloody adorable! Most manly man you've ever heard right here, guys.

At any rate guys, I have a good idea of the plan for the next few chapters. Don't worry guys, their first kiss will be coming soon. Leave a review if you enjoyed, and if you have any ideas you'd like to suggest, let me know, I'd love to get some of you guys' ideas in on this. Other than that, I'll see you in the next chapter. See ya!


	12. Chapter 12

Serena woke up first, finding herself to still be in Ash arms from the night before. Serena took a few seconds to realise where she was and what was happening, but upon remembering that she was in the arms of her new boyfriend, she relaxed, smiled, and snuggled up in to him more, laying her head gently on his chest. His body was warm, which made her feel drowsy again. She gazed at his face as he slept. He had a large grin on his peaceful face. It made Serena smile, and wonder if he had been grinning like that since the morning or not. Not that it matters to her, but she found him to look adorable like this. It almost felt like a shame that he had to wake up at all. She would be perfectly happy to spend the rest of her days like this, snuggled up in a warm bed with Ash.

Serena just stayed like this for a while. She didn't know how long, but it was a while. She didn't have either the heart to wake Ash up, or the want to get up. She was perfectly happy staying like this. She heard the tent that Bonnie and Clemont unzip and heard them come out.

She heard Bonnie yawn, and saw her silhouette stretch. "Morning, Clemont."

"Shush!" Clemont subdued her, in a whisper.

"Huh?"

"Ash and Serena aren't awake yet. We should be quiet so we don't wake them up!" Clemont explained. Serena smiled to herself.

"Oh, right!" Bonnies volume dropped, also reaching a whisper. She then giggled and went over to the tent Ash and Serena were in.

"What are you doing?" Clemont asked.

"I want to see if I can see them through the tent." Bonnie explained. From Serena's perspective, Bonnies silhouette had gotten much larger, peering through the tent. Serena was tempted to move away, but just couldn't, she didn't want to leave this beyond perfect place next to Ash. Secondly, she literally couldn't. Ash was held onto her, and she couldn't move. Bonnie peered in through the thin sheets of the tent before backing off and sighing. "No, I don't see anything. That's disappointing. If I know Serena, she's probably all snuggled up next to her Ashy." She put a large emphasis on the word 'Ashy'.

Serena was shocked and amused and impressed and surprised all at the same time. Bonnie had managed to guess exactly right, but then again, it was likely that had been why she had pretended to have had a bad dream in the first place. For someone so young, she was, admittedly, quite clever.

It was reasonably quiet after that. Serena heard the clangs and taps of equipment, the clang of something metallic, something Clemont was tinkering with most likely, and the occasional sentence uttered by either Clemont or Bonnie, but their voices were muffled by the time they reached the tent, making it impossible to tell which one of them it was.

It was a short while before she noticed that Ash was starting to stir up, unusually earlier than normal. Perhaps he had heard the noise from outside the tent. Either way, he slowly and groggily opened one eye, his right eye, and after staring blankly to the side for a moment, allowing his eyes to adjust, he blinked and looked around the room, before noticing Serena, who was looking up at him with a smile on her face. He had forgotten she had stayed with him during the night, and for a brief second, he had nearly jumped straight out of bed - literally - before he remembered. Instead, he gave her a smile.

"Hello there" he said with a long yawn.

"Hello, Ashy." Serena said with a grin, using the nickname Bonnie had used earlier herself. She caught Ash's face turning red lightly, which was what she had wanted.

"When the heck did I get that nickname?" Ash asked with another yawn, shorter this time, and rubbing his eye.

"About twenty minutes ago. You sleep well?" Serena asked with a chuckle.

"Yeah, actually." Ash replied. "I'm guessing you did."

"That I did. I got to sleep in a bed with you. How wouldn't I be able to sleep well?" Serena asked, a flirtatious tone to her voice.

"Gee, I don't know. Maybe the fact that the tent is haunted?"

Serena shuddered, which made Ash laugh, fully aware of her discomfort around the supernatural elements of the world, remembering their experience at the house they had believed to haunted, but in reality was just a small Espurr. "I'm only kidding." Ash said with a chuckle, reassuring her.

Serena sighed, quick to forgive and forget the whole affair. She instead tightened her grip around Ash and held onto him tighter than before.

"H-Hey, I thought we had to get up." Ash said, feeling his heart race when Serena rested her head on his chest.

"I never said we had to get up. And besides, I want to enjoy cuddling you a little longer, Ashy." Serena gave her reply slyly, with a grin and a giggle, enjoying herself.

Ash sighed and allowed her to. He instead, placed a hand upon the top of her head and said "Never even thought you could be so mischievous, Serena."

"Didn't have a reason to be" she replied, smiling to herself, loving absolutely every second of this, as Ash was, only he was out of his general comfort zone.

They remained like this for a further while, before they sighed and admitted they were going to have to get up at some point. Both of them were welcomed to a chorus of teasing by Bonnie, who as it turned out, had been eavesdropping on them. This information caused both of them to flush a dark shade of scarlet. Clemont let out an amused sigh and served them their breakfast. After they had eaten, a map was produced, and Clemont pointed out their route.

"The map said there was something dangerous up ahead, didn't it?" Ash asked, studying the map. To him, it looked perfectly normal. There were no obvious hazards highlighted.

"It's apparently a natural 'living labyrinth' according to the map." Clemont explained.

"How the heck can a labyrinth be alive?" Serena asked, disbelief in her voice evident.

"According to this, the Pokémon here rely on the trees to fertile the soil, which in turn provides them with plants that they eat. In order to speed up this process, some of the grass type Pokémon use Growth on the trees in order for them to grow quicker. When the trees grow, the roots underground toss and turn the soil, making it richer. This makes the plants grow larger and more plentiful for the Pokémon here. Now, the bad news about this is that the Pokémon now use Growth so rapidly that trees and vines and the likes grow all over the tracks, and sometimes around travellers. We're basically very likely to get separated during this." Clemont explained at length.

Serena shuddered, "And that, combined with those reports about this forest..."

"We might as well have just gone straight through the forest to start with." Ash sighed. "We've got to go through it here anyway. We'd have been quicker going straight through. And we might have avoided this maze."

"A bit late now, Ash." Bonnie chipped in.

"Why the heck are they hosting a Showcase here?! They couldn't pick Lumious City, or Shalour City? It had to be the scary forest town?" Serena voiced out aloud in disbelief. "Who runs these events? Why the town with the memory erasing forest? Doesn't that seem a bit dangerous to anyone else?"

Ash put his hand onto Serena's shoulder. Calming her down quickly, though she still maintained everything she had just said made sense, and to both Ash and Clemont, it did.

"In any case, we should go in pairs, holding the others hand, or just keeping ahold of each other. That way, if we get separated, we won't be on our own, or, we'll notice if one of us does go missing." Clemont suggested. "I'll go with Bonnie, for obvious reasons. And you two go together... Again, for obvious reasons."

Ash and Serena both nodded. All feelings aside, that made the most logical sense.

After packing up their tents, and holding the hands of the partners, the group began to make its way down the forest path.

Serena's grip onto Ash tightened as they walked through the forest. She never did particularly like forests since the event in Pallet Town. That aside, this forest wasn't exactly inviting either. Not to mention the mysterious goings on in ththe forest already. It was like a recipe for disaster.

"Relax, Serena." Ash said. "Worst comes to it, I'll protect you."

Serena smiled slightly, warmed by Ash's words. Silent walking then ensued.

"Clemont, how far do you think it'll be until we're through?" Ash asked.

Silence.

"Clemont?"

Silence.

Ash and Serena turned around. Clemont and Bonnie were gone.

"Oh, well that's just great." Ash sighed. Now where the heck were they supposed to go?

"How did they get separated from us?" Serena asked. "We've been walking in a straight line. How did they loose us?"

There was a minute of confused silence. Neither of them had any idea whatsoever. To be frank, both of them were slightly afraid of the forest all of the sudden.

Serena's grip on Ash tightened.

Surrounding them, the leaves began to rustle out of nowhere, breaking the previously calm surroundings. Shadows began moving around them. A gust of wind blew through the area, and in front of Ash and Serena, appeared three Ghost type Pokémon.

Dusknoir, Gengar and Mismagius.

"Those are the Pokémon messing with people?..." Ash said, thinking aloud.

The three Pokèmons eyes glowed. A power dormant in Ghost types awakened.

Blackness ensued.

* * *

Cliffhanger : P don't worry, this is going somewhere. I have the rest of the story planned out, and I have to admit, I like my own imagination a lot : D

And I'm VERY SORRY FOR THE WAIT. so much for one update a week. I'm on break, and my sleeping pattern is totally screwed. To make it up to you all, the first chapter of "Looks don't matter" will be up by the end of the week too, as a double for you from me this week.

As always, leave a review if you enjoyed this chapter, and I'll see you next chapter. See ya!


	13. Chapter 13

Ashs eyes began to flicker and he began to stir. His eyes suddenly shot open, and he found himself shooting up, sitting himself up. He had been laid down in the ground, next to a large fallen tree to his right. He felt like he should be in pain, but in actuality, he wasn't scathed whatsoever.

"Ahhh... My head..." He gritted his teeth, and clutched his forehead. Whatever had happened to him had left him with a sore headache.

"Pika pi"

"Ash, you're awake!"

To his left, he saw Serena knelt next to him, with a look of relief visible on her face. Pikachu was with her, and jumped onto his trainers shoulder and nuzzling his cheeks.

"Good to see you too, buddy." Ash smiled.

"Are you okay, Ash?" Serena asked him, a relieved yet at the same time, worried look on her face made itself known.

"Oh, Serena... You're safe. Thank God..." Ash said, acknowledging her, thankful for her safety. A small smile appeared on his lips. Despite his throbbing headache, he was more concerned about her condition. "You're not hurt, are you?"

Serena shook her head. "I'm okay. I woke up a while ago though. I watched over you while you were asleep, made sure you were okay. You seemed... Restless. I was worried..."

"How long have we been asleep?" Ash asked, confused. Pikachu shook his head, indicating he did not know. They had been asleep? Well, thinking about it, that made the most logical sense. How else would they get here?

"An hour I think... You've been out for about 20 minutes longer than me..."

"I see..." Ash said, still a bit dazed and dizzy. "Well, thanks for watching over me." He then looked around their surroundings. They had been taken to a denser part of the forest, but had been left in a clearing. The path had been cut off by grown roots, no doubt caused by the Pokémon native to this forest using growth, meaning the path only lead one way. They were sat by a fallen tree in the clearing, the only one that he could notice. And surrounding them, nothing but a thick surrounding of trees, some of which looked to be hundreds of years old. Ash questioned where in the heck they even were at this point. Had they been taken deeper into the forest, or was there a clearing nearby?

"Ash..."

Ash refocused his attention to Serena. She was looking down to the ground, and her arms were shaking. "You okay, Serena?"

Serena faced Ash. She had tears in her eyes. She only looked at him for a second, before flinging her arms around him and tightening hugging him. "I was so worried about you! I was terrified that you wouldn't wake up! That you'd leave me here..."

Ash sat there In shock for a moment. He had no idea. He had known she hadn't been keen on forests since she had been younger, but she hadn't broken down like this before. He also knew she wasn't an especially strong person emotionally, no stronger than he was, but he knew she was usually much stronger than this. Could it be she was worried that she would be left alone, that he would go after she had waited for him for so long, just as the two of them were finally together, and happy? When he thought about that, and what Serena had said, he hugged her back, smiling to himself. She really did care. And she really did love him.

"Sorry, Serena. I promise, I'm not going anywhere. I'm not gonna leave you. Ever." He pulled away from Serena, to look her in the eyes. "I love you. And I'm gonna stay next to you for as long as I live."

Ash then pulled her back into another hug, one that wasn't as tight, but equally as warm and comforting. Serena let Ash hold her, and moved closer to him.

They remained like that for a while, before they had to let go. Ash stood up and did another quick check of the surrounding area. "Guess we don't have a choice. We'll have to follow the pathway." He turned and saw Serena was still uncomfortable. He smiled at her timid was, and held out his hand. "Here. Take my hand. We won't get separated this way."

Serena seemed to blush slightly red, before nodding. "O-Okay." She gently placed her hand into his, and he wrapped his hand around hers, causing her not only to blush, but move closer to him, making her feel safer just by being with him.

The two of them walked down the forest path, ominous in itself. The two of them remembered being confronted by three ghost type Pokémon before waking up in the clearing. That made it a same bet that they were the ones who had brought them here. But why? What was the point? Or were they just messing with them? Or was there some ulterior motive? Ash didn't particularly care. His main concern was getting both himself and Serena out of this place.

They walked together in silence, both of them keeping a look out for the Pokémon that had brought them here. Maybe if they found them, they could get a few answers.

Eventually, they reached the end of the pathway. At its end was a house, a small manor. Around its perimeter, was an iron fence, protecting the house it was set around. The fence towered above Ash and Serena. The mansion had been designed in a gothic manor, had two floors, and looked to be maybe 50 years old. It also appeared to be abandoned too.

Ash and Serena's faces dropped at the sight of it. It looked like it came straight out of a horror movie. Who the heck would have wanted to live in the middle of a forest like this?

"I don't remember seeing this place when we came in." Ash said. "We must be deeper into the forest than we were to begin with."

Serena shuddered. "Lost deeper into the creepy haunted forest. Oh, great." She clung onto Ash's arm, holding onto him for comfort. "We should turn back. There has to be another way out of this place."

"Maybe someone still lives here." Ash suggested. "If they do, they might be able to tell us how to get out of the forest, or at the very least, there might be a phone in there.. I think it's worth a look."

"Are you serious? That house looks like it hasn't been lived in for decades! What makes you think someone lives there now?"

"It's not like we have any other options. Besides, if it's not inhabited, it might be a good place to take a breather. We've got a little food between us, we should be fine." Ash reasoned, sighing. Truth be told, this house freaked him out too. The look on Pikachu's face was also one of discomfort. He was about as comfortable with this as Ash was.

They began to walk, before a loud 'FWOOSH' sound, and a flash of black light, appeared before them. From it, materialised a Pokémon - Gengar.

"You! You're that Gengar from before! What did you bring us here for? Tell us!" Ash yelled at the Pokémon that had shown itself to them.

"Pika!" Pikachu's cheeks began to release sparks of electricity, showing that it had limited patience and wanted answers as much as its trainer.

Gengar seemed relaxed, despite being in front of a mob of angry faces. As opposed to the usual look a Gengar had, which usually was a row of teeth, smiling a devilish grin from its mouth, it instead showed one of concern and worry. It then shook it's head and motioned for them to follow it, with a look of concern, already floating away from the small group.

"I think it wants us to follow it." Ash said.

"Are you crazy? You want to follow the Pokémon that knocked us out and brought us here into that house?!" Serena yelled, frightened at the prospect of following the Gengar inside.

"I'm not a big fan of it either, but we were gonna go inside that place anyway, we might as well follow it." Ash said, tightening his grip on her hand.

Serena sighed and her face dropped. "Why did it have to be a haunted house?..."

Pikachu sweat dropped, scratching it's head, both sympathising and amused with Serena.

* * *

Ash lead Serena through the house, firmly held onto her hand, promising nothing would happen to the two of them, as they followed the Gengar they had been approached by. Throughout the house, they had been met with a whole manner of Ghost type Pokémon, including Gastly and Duskul, many of which the sight made Serena shiver.

The Gengar lead them to the end of the corridor. At then end was a single door. The Gengar hovered outside of it, waiting for Ash, Serena and Pikachu to catch up to it.

"Gengar, Gen, Gen Gengar." The Ghost types speech echoed throughout the house.

Pikachu, able to understand the Pokémon, stepped forwards and began to communicate with Gengar. "Pika Pika?"

"Gengar! Gengar, Gen!"

Turning to Ash, Pikachu pointed at the door. "Pika pi, pika Pikachu!"

"You sure, buddy?" Ash knelt down to his partner Pokémon.

"What is it?" Serena asked, nervous.

"I think Pikachu and Gengar want us to do something in that room."

"Do what, exactly?"

"Gengar!"

"Pika pika!"

"They want us to... Help?" Ash raised an eyebrow in question. "Help what? Who? How?" He then turned to the door, staring it down for a second, before slowly pushing it open. Inside the room it was pitch black, except for a dim light coming from the right. The light revealed a room that seemed to be in worse shape than the rest of the building, rotting wooden floorboards, which felt quite damp to touch. Cobwebs were in nearly all the corners of the room. The paint on the walls had peeled off, leaving it hanging on only lightly, easily to be knocked off by someone merely brushing against it lightly. Ash turned to the right, behind the door, and saw a crowd of Shuppet surrounding a TV screen, which was showing only static. It had fallen from atop its original place atop a set of drawers and had now landed at an angle between the drawers and the wall.

The Shuppet looked as if they were pulling something from the TV, but no matter how hard they pulled, they seemed unable to get what they were trying to retrieve. Ash peered over the bodies of all the Shuppet to get a better look.

It was a Pokémon, trapped underneath the TV. A Rotom.

"Oh man, move aside!" Ash moved in without even thinking, and began to try to lift the TV, but to his surprise, it was heavier than expected. Serena quickly dashed over to help him lift it up, and together, they managed to lift it into the air. Pikachu meanwhile, lent a hand to the Shuppet, and began to pull on their trapped Rotom friend. After a struggle, and a solid minute of a tug and war game with the furniture, the Rotom came flying out from its trapped spot, bounced off a wall, before levitating in the air, dizzy, but okay. The cheers from its Shuppet friends filled the room.

"So, that Gengar was trying to get us to help out its friend?" Ash asked, still a bit confused.

"It looks like it." Serena said. "Maybe the TV was too heavy for them to lift themselves?"

"You're half right."

Serena literally nearly hit the deck. In a sheer panic, shock and surprise, she yelled and threw herself into Ash's arms for comfort. Ash meanwhile, turned around and saw an elderly man, maybe in his mid 80's, dressed in a forest rangers uniform.

"Sorry!" The man said, bowing in apology. "Didn't mean to startle you."

"You really don't do well in these places, do you?" Ash teased an embarrassed Serena.

"What the heck are you doing around an old abandoned house in the middle of the woods? That would terrify anyone!" Serena yelled back at the man, still recovering from sheer shock.

"Abandoned? No, no, this is my home."

* * *

Ash took ahold of the teacup the man had provided him, and took a sip from it. It was decent enough, nothing bad, nothing great either. Bland came to mind. The living space was about as inviting as the rest of the house had been, that is to say, a complete wreck. Serena sat next to him, still uncomfortable, but seemingly more at ease around a friendly face. She had apologised to the man, and he had accepted her apology, and been incredibly nice and polite about the whole affair. His name turned out to be Duncan, and he had been living in these woods for almost his whole life.

"So, why do you live with the house in such a... State?" Serena asked.

"Well, when I got married, me and my wife, her name was Sarah, came to live here with our Pokémon. She was a Pokémon breeder, you see, and she had a soft spot in particular for Ghost type Pokémon. She mostly raised Ghost types herself when she used to travel. When I met her, she beat my entire team down with a Dusclops and a Lampent." Duncan explained, sipping his tea, clearly in a nostalgia trip, remembering years past. "Anyway, after we married, she set up a room, the room you found Rotom in, to be of ideal condition for Ghost type Pokémon. Her Pokémon loved playing in there, and sometimes even brought in other types of Pokémon to join in their games in there. And that was how we lived for a very long time... But, not a year ago, she passed."

Ash and Serena looked at one another. The thought passed their minds. They had never even remotely considered that one of them would die before the other, leaving one of them alone. Ash put his hand on Serena's, comforting her. Pikachu noticed this motion, and looked down to the ground, showing his sympathy with Duncan.

"I spent a few months in depression after she died. It was painful, you can't imagine. Even now I'm still not fully past it. But I was left with her Pokémon. They had become like family to me. I saw them have fun, even after their trainer had passed on, trying to make others happy with their games. So I got the idea to honour her memory by turning the house into a perfect playground for Ghost type Pokémon. She had always wanted to do more for the Pokémon of the forest, even when she was helping them every day. I know she would have loved to see this place now. We've even got a few Rattatta and other kinds of Pokémon living here. Eventually, the wild Pokémon just began to call this place home, and I haven't been lonely since then."

Ash smiled. "I've got to say, that has to be one of the most incredible things I've ever heard. Turning your entire home into a heaven for Pokémon."

"I enjoy helping the Pokémon here. Me and my wife did that every day for nearly 60 years." Duncan said. He gestured towards a picture of him and his wife on the cabinet next to Ash. Interestingly, they looked similar to Ash and Serena, only a few years older.

"You remind me of my wife, you two." Duncan said.

"Huh?"

"Two young people in love. It's a feeling you never forget, and I promise you, you won't forget it either. Not for as long as you live."

Both Ash and Serena flushed red. This guy had noticed pretty quickly, but then again, considering Serena's actions previously, it was pretty easy to get past.

"Your wife would be so proud of this place, I can just tell." Serena said, complimenting the old mans creation. Upon hearing the background of the houses roots, Serena lost any fear or anxiety about the house whatsoever, replaced instead with respect and appreciation.

"I hope so. I like to think that her spirit walks the halls, that she's one with the Ghost types that she loves, and that she can see how happy they are, and how happy they make me in return." Duncan told them, sipping his tea.

"That sounds so sweet." Serena said. In its own way, it was sweet. Changing his way of living, and becoming completely selfless to help others to make the spirit of his wife happy filled her with a sense of happiness and pride.

"So, that Gengar, Dusknoir and Mismagius belongsed to your wife?" Ash asked, beginning to fit all the pieces together.

"And the Rotom you so kindly helped. I do apologise for their actions getting you here, they can be very... What's the word... Overzealous, I think. They probably thought it was quicker then trying to get the message across to you." Duncan explained.

"No, it's no problem at all. If anything, we should be saying sorry for entering your home without permission." Serena said, pointing out their actions.

"Gengar invited you in, so it's fine with me." Duncan said with a smile.

"I don't get why the Pokémon couldn't lift the TV themselves, or why you couldn't help them." Ash pointed out.

"As you noticed, that TV is quite heavy. It's built that way because there are plenty of circuits and the likes inside because that's how Rotom prefer their living spaces. The Pokémon aren't strong enough to lift that, and even if I had been around, I was shopping in the town, you see, I'm not young anymore. I doubt I could have helped." Duncan pointed out. Ash nodded. That did make a lot of sense.

"I can't thank you enough for helping Rotom out. If there's anything I can do for you, please, don't hesitate to ask." Duncan continued, putting his finished tea cup on the table.

"Now that you mention it, you couldn't tell us how to get to Forestcove Town, could you? We've been gone a long time, and I'm sure our friends will be worried about us." Serena asked. Ash's eyes widened slightly, only now remembering that Clemont and Bonnie had been separated from them a while ago now.

"Sure thing. In fact, I'm more than happy to give you a lift there. You'll be there in maybe half an hour, tops." Duncan said, smiling at the young couple.

* * *

"Ash, Serena, you're here!"

"Sereeeena!"

Serena found herself being tightly hugged by Bonnie, who had been worried sick about her friend. Serena smiled, and gently hugged her back. Ash explained everything that happened to them to Clemont, who listened intently, and gave his sympathies, respect and his thanks to Duncan.

"We owe you, big time, Duncan. Thank you." Ash said.

"You take care of that girl you have there." Duncan chuckled. "It's obvious you care about her. I think you're a lucky kid, to find someone so right when you're so young. You've got your whole life ahead of you, with that girl if you want it to be with her."

Ash found his face go red at this. That told Duncan all he needed to know. "Tell her that. Anyways, I had best get home and feed the Pokémon. It's been a pleasure to meet you all. I hope you enjoy your visit here to Forestcove town. Serena, you mentioned you were performing here?"

"Thats right, in the Pokémon showcase."

"Well, I'll make sure to tune into it and cheer you on with everyone back home. You'll do great, I'm sure."

Serena blushed. "Thank you, sir."

Duncan smiled, and waved one last time to the group of youths he had met today, and walked back to his car.

Serena stood next to Ash. "He was such a nice man. I'm glad we met him today."

Ash didn't respond. Instead he was staring, mouth open at Duncan's car.

"Huh? Ash?" Serena began to ask, but stopped when she saw it herself.

The pale, see through image of a woman in the car, sat next to Duncan in the passenger seat. Sarah. It had to be.

They watched the car drive away, dumbfounded at what they just saw.

"I'll be damned." Ash said, slowly in an amazed whisper. "Looks like love really does find a way."

* * *

That night, Ash and Serena found themselves staring out of the balcony together, and reflecting on the events of the day gone by. It had been an experience, certainly. Both of them were happy to have met Duncan.

"Well, your showcase is in a few days, right Serena?" Ash asked.

Serena nodded. "I'm so nervous, but I'm excited at the same time!" She said, making two fists with her hands and bringing them up near her face.

Ash smiled. "I'll help you rehearse if you like."

"You've done enough though, really."

"I don't help you cause I feel like I have to. I help because I want to. " Ash said, smiling at Serena.

"Oh Ash..." Serena hugged Ash, holding him tightly.

Ash smiled. He remembered the advice he had been given by Duncan earlier today. It had been good advice.

"Hey, Serena?" Ash said, steeling himself.

"Yeah?.."

"You know... We haven't been together long, but I really do love you. I'm so happy I met you, and I feel so lucky that you like me too. I'm so happy you're my girlfriend. And I... I'd be happy if I spent the rest of my life like this."

Serena looked at Ash in awe. She smiled, blushed, and moved closer to him. "Ash... I feel the same... Say, could you do something for me?"

"Yeah?"

Serena closed her eyes, and a light blush covered her face. She faced him and leant forward towards him slightly. "Kiss me."

Ash went dark red at the mere thought of it, but at the same time, felt nothing but a longing to do it. Serena kept in the same position she was in. Closed eyes, edging towards him, her mouth opened slightly, waiting for him to kiss her. She was barely a few inches away from him anyway. Slowly, he bridged the gap between then, moving closer until his lips finally met hers. Upon their lips making contact, Serena moved her body to be against Ash's, and Ash held her closely, one of his hands now placed upon her cheek, one around her waist. It was like an electrical current sweeping through both their bodies. They kept like this for about 30 seconds before they separated.

Serena was by far the most red of the two blushing teens. "That was my first kiss..."

Ash smiled. "Me as well."

Serena hugged her boyfriend again. Life could not have been more perfect.

* * *

There it is, the first kiss *U*

What do we think? Good chapter? Pretty long one, I'll give it that. Serena's horror scale was a bit high, but I based her off of me in this chapter. I can't do horror. At all. I'm supposed to play Five Nights At Freddie's for my YouTube channel and I'm putting it off so much because I hate horror so much. That's the level I was going for with Serena's character. If she came across as wimpy, sorry, I was just writing her as I probably would end up being like In this scenario. And for those of you wondering, no, Duncan is not based on anyone I know whatsoever, I simply made him up at the last minute, and to be fair, I think I wrote him quite well. Just so we're clear. Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter. I'll see you next one. See ya!


	14. Chapter 14

Serena had practiced the routine with her Pokémon over a hundred times over the next three days. Getting it down to the mark, tweaking little bits until they were perfect. Committing it to memory, getting their cues all right. It had been a lot of hard work. Ash had helped her, which made thing easier, but it had still been a hard task to get everything done and ready to go.

It finally came to the day when she had to perform. She stood in front of the mirror in her room, staring at her reflection, contemplating everything she had learnt about her performances up until this point. From every failure there was a lesson to be learnt, and Serena had learnt them all. Now all that there was left to do was to put it all to action. There felt to be a lot of pressure this time around. Her last performance had gone well, so it felt like she now owed people a bigger show.

She heard a knock on her door. It was quite a rapid and heavy knock. Ash's. "Serena, it's time. You ready?"

Serena went and opened the door, revealing it was indeed Ash. "Yeah, I'm ready."

"You feeling alright?"

"Nervous. Worse than last time. But that aside, I'm fine."

Ash smiled. "You'll be great. I know it. You've worked hard on this, it'll pay off, you'll see."

Serena nodded and smiled back at Ash. "You always know just what to say."

"Let's go, Serena. I can't wait to see you win this thing." He held out his hand for her, which she took smiling.

"You think I'll win?"

"I believe in you, Serena. You can win this one, I know it."

The two made their way to the lobby, where they met Bonnie and Clemont, and made their way to the Performance Hall. It seemed to be a big thing in Forestcove town, as there were lots of people going to watch the performance, and lot of competitors were there too. Many of them looked to be first timers, nervous and excited, while even more appeared to be experienced performers, ready to show off the fruits of their experience and hours of labor. It had been no different for Serena during her debut, but she still got the same chills she did when she walked up the steps to the performance stage in her previous attempts. Her first one ended in failure, though her second one had gone much better, placing in the top ten. Now she was aiming for number one.

The group lined up together, waiting to sign Serena into the performance. Around them were some performers who were taking this time to get in some last minute practice. One of the performers had an Eevee, and it's performance consisted of using Double Team and wish, which created a starry glitter that fell around both trainer and Pokémon. Some Performers were using some more unorthodox Pokémon for performing, such as a Klang, or a Girafarig, or a Magnazone.

Serena looked at one of her Pokèballs, the one which contained Pancham. Today was going to be Panchams performing debut, something it had been looking forward to for a long while now. She was certain that Pancham was more than ready to go. She let Pancham out of its Pokèball, and knelt down besides it. "You're ready, right Pancham? You and me, we're gonna win this and take home the gold!"

Pancham pumped it's fist back at Serena, signalizing its confidence. "Cham, Pancham!"

"Pancham looks ready to go." Clemont commented, seeing the energy Pancham had.

"Well, Pancham has been looking forward to performing for a while now. I think it was starting to get a bit frustrating for it. I'm just glad that Pancham seems so ready for this." Serena said, watching as Pancham began to do stretches, preparing itself for its performance.

"Confidence is defiantly good." Ash commented, complimenting Pancham. "You feeling confident, Serena?"

Serena nodded. "Still nervous, but that's got to be normal, right?"

"Yeah. Even now, when I challenge a gym, I find it hard to think straight. And I've been doing that for years." Ash told her.

"It's good to be a little nervous. It stops you from being over-confident. If you have too much confidence, it can lead to arrogance, and then you make mistakes." Clemont said, speaking as a Gym Leader, he had faced opponents who has been over-confident, and those who were overly-nervous. He had found that those with a mix had often been the ones who had been victorious, as they never over or underestimated him as a trainer, or themselves and their own abilities.

Serena nodded. "You're right, guys. I just have to stay calm, and it'll be fine. Plus, I'm sure Pancham would be great even if I wasn't there, wouldn't you?"

Their conversation continued until they reached the front desk. Serena registered her name, and the Pokémon she would be using. Once that was all done, she was now eligible to compete today. Ash walked with her towards the rooms where the Performers were allowed to change and prepare for the show.

"I know I keep saying this, but good luck." Ash said to his girlfriend. "I just know your gonna be great."

Without warning, Serena threw herself at Ash, tightly hugging him. Unlike previously, Ash had gotten used to this by now, and instantly responded with a hug of his own. Serena said to him, "You've helped me out so much with this. Before we confessed to each other. After we confessed to each other. You've always helped me out before. This isn't just my performance. It's ours. And I promise, I'll make sure our performance is a huge success."

Ash smiled. "It'll be the best one on stage."

Ash made his way back to Bonnie and Clemont who had been waiting for him near the reception area. Bonnie was interacting with a Lilipup, almost certainly belonging to a trainer here, seemingly both in awe of a Pokémon she had never seen before, and entranced by the cuteness of it. Clemont sat on one of the seats provided by the Performance hall, near to Bonnie, watching her to make sure she didn't get into trouble, but also scanning through Serena's competition. There were plenty of Pokémon he, as a gym leader, had not seen before. He had had to warn Bonnie several times to not annoy or disturb other trainers Pokémon, but in this case, a friendly trainer who owned the Lilipup had told Clemont that it was okay.

Ash waved over Clemont and Bonnie. Clemont waved back, and turned to get Bonnie. Bonnie gave the Lilipup a goodbye cuddle and thanked it's trainer for letting her play with it, before joining her brother in joining Ash.

"Well, she's all ready." Ash said, letting out a worried sigh. While he was confident that she would be great, he remembered how upset and depressed she was after her first performance attempt. It hurt him to see her like that, even then. He never wanted to see her like that again.

"You sound worried. What happened to that confident Ash that was giving her advice not long ago?" Clemont asked, in a slightly mocking, jokey tone.

"She's put a lot into this. I hope she does well. I have faith in her, yeah, but still..." Ash said quietly, glancing back at the room Serena had just entered.

Clemont smiled slightly. He could see Ash really, truly cared for Serena. It was so obvious now, since they had gotten together. He had hid it well during their journey until that point, he had to admit. Either that, or he hadn't developed romantic feelings for her. How he did it didn't matter. He honestly felt glad to have met them, and for them to have met one another. He sighed, and said, "Hard work pays off. You know that. You've worked hard for your whole journey, right? You've got four badges now for the Kalos league. And I'll bet you've got even more from other regions, right?"

Ash did some quick adding up in his head. "Eight gym badges from five regions, and four from the Orange league, as well as winning that one."

"And you worked for all that. Serena's been practicing this none stop since her last performance. She'll be fine, and you know it." Clemont reasoned.

"Yeah! Serena's been working super hard! She's going to impress everyone!" Bonnie said, adding in.

Ash reluctantly smiled. They had valid points. He felt lucky to have such great friends. "Yeah, you're right. C'mon, let's get going. We need to find our seats."

Serena sat in front of the mirror with a hairbrush, running it through her hair. She had spent the last few minutes before the performances began. Pancham stood nearby, mentally preparing itself for its first public performance with Serena. Pancham seemed to have more confidence that Serena did, which was good, Serena thought, with any luck, she and Pancham might be able to get away with this solely on Panchams raw energy, it certainly had the raw energy to spare. Serena shook her head after thinking that, she couldn't rely on Pancham like that alone. She had to do her bit too. She slapped her cheeks with both hands, trying to focus herself.

"I've done this twice now. Why am I so nervous this time around?..." She asked herself silently, running her hands through her hair. Silky smooth. She blushed, wondering if Ash would like her hair like this. She toyed with the idea of brushing her hair again before falling asleep, and asking Ash if he would run his hands though her hair, see if he liked it like that or not.

"Wait... Is Ash the reason I'm so nervous?" She suddenly thought. It made sense, actually. Her previous performances, she had prepared and produced herself, and she had been in them, and aimed high solely for herself and her Pokémon. Now, Ash had been helping her out recently, giving her advice, and practicing with her. It felt like their performance, and Serena loved what they had produced together. It could never have been as good as it was without his help, but now, like she had said before, it was their performance.

Suddenly, it hit her, she wasn't nervous for herself. She was nervous for Ash, not so much for herself. She didn't want all the effort Ash had put into helping her go to waste, for him to feel like he had wasted his time, or that she simply wasn't good enough to practice with.

She felt so upset, suddenly. Her confidence suddenly fled her body, replaced only with angst and worry. She was terrified that if she failed, Ash would decide he didn't want her anymore. That would kill her. She'd rather be dead that go on without Ash. She knew it was never going to happen, but the part of a person which always forces you to consider nothing but the negatives took over. 'What's if's and 'but maybe's filled Serena's head, making her fear only the worst. Ash should be spending his time focusing on the Kalos league, so why should he waste it helping a terrible performer like her?

She forced herself to calm down. She had to stay strong, not only for herself and her Pokémon, but for Ash as well. It was their performance, not just hers, and if she wanted to make sure all the efforts he had put into helping her performance hadn't gone to waste, that they had gone towards helping her win. The thoughts she had had actually worried her. She snapped back into reality, and continued brushing her hair.

"I love you, Ash..." She whispered to herself, touching her lips, the lips that had kissed Ash not too long ago.

She let out a heavy sigh. She just had to focus. She glanced towards Pancham, who was giving Serena a worried look, showing concern for its trainer. She smiled towards Pancham. "Right, sorry about that. I'm better now." She said working up some enthusiasm for their performance. She thought to herself, how much she had riding on this. How much was relying on her winning. She swallowed. She couldn't afford to lose here.

* * *

Ash, Clemont and Bonnie were sat on the second floor of seats, close to the front. They had a good view of the stage, and it would be easy for anyone in stage to see them. Surrounding them was a sea of onlookers, patiently waiting for the Showcase to begin. It was a big deal apparently in Forestcove Town. The town was far out of the way, so it made sense that big events like these didn't get here very often.

"Ash, you've been working with Serena on her performance, right?" Bonnie asked Ash, tugging on his jacket.

"Yeah."

"How good is it? Is it gonna be super-special-incredible?!"

Ash smiled at Bonnie's excitable nature, and her enthusiasm for anything Pokémon related. Especially whenever Serena was involved. However, he wasn't going to let her find out about Serena's performance so easily. "You're gonna have to wait and see."

Bonnie sunk in her chair. "No fair." Ash and Clemont both laughed at this.

"I can't wait to see it. You two wouldn't let us watch you while you worked, and I'm really curious to see what you came up with." Clemont said to Ash.

Ash grinned. "It'll be a good one." He looked again towards the stage. 'That is if she doesn't panic...'

He was worried about her. She seemed more nervous than usual. But he stayed quiet. No reason to make Clemont and Bonnie worry about her too.

With that, the lights in the Performance hall began to dim down until they were completely off, during which time, the noise in the hall went down with it, as the audience realized the show was about to begin.

"Here we go." Ash whispered.

"Welcome, one and all, to the Forestcove Town Pokémon Showcase!" The announcer bellowed throughout the speakers placed all over the room. Once he had finished saying this, a chorus of cheers filled the room, Bonnie's and Ash's included. The announcer then asked for quiet, and went through the the rules of a Showcase for the first timers, and reminding returning patrons too. "We are pleased to announce we have been graced with a turnout of 40 Performers today for our showcase, and so, we can assure you a show you won't forget for a long time!"

"40 performers?" Bonnie repeated.

"That's a lot of competition for Serena. And the majority seem more experienced than her." Clemont said.

Ash didn't move his view from directly on the stage. "She'll be fine. Just watch."

"So, without further ado, let us begin with the show!"

And so, the performances began. The Showcase started off strong with a Trainer and her Altaria using a combination of Mist and Safeguard, concealing their performance partially, before the trainer began to juggle large rings into the air, all of which Altaria was able to fly through using its speed, before blasting all of the rings into the air with a whirlwind, and concealing its and its trainers retreat from the stage using explosions produced from a Draco Meteor. The bar had been set high.

One by one, Performers began to display their various acts and shows. Some of which ended in an embarrassing failure for the participant. While many in the audience laughed at some of the spectacular failures, Ash felt nothing but sympathy for them, remembering how it had affected Serena. The same though had also affected Bonnie and Clemont.

There were some truly impressive performances, and the quality of the Showcase kept raising. Some magnificent combinations and routines had been formed over the preparation time. It was hard to believe that this was still the rookie class. Some very stiff competition for Serena.

After a performer who had used a Pidgeotto had finished, and the curtains had closed, the announcer cleared his throat, and said, "Next up, we have a rising star in Pokémon Showcases, who impressed the judges in her last Showcase, but didn't quite make the cut, let us all welcome Serena of Vaniville Town!"

"Here she is!" Bonnie yelled with excitement.

"This is it!" Clemont said with a big grin on his face.

Ash smiled at no one in particular. He closed his eyes, remembering all the training they had done. The choreography, the moves, their effect, how it lasted, and how it looked. Ash opened his eyes again, and said to himself, "You show these rookies whose gonna be the next Kalos Queen, Serena."

A round of applause followed, and the curtains were drawn back. There stood assent, in the dress her mother had bought for her to use in Showcases. Her hair was brushed, and her outfit spotless. To her side, stood Pancham, wearing some clothing that Serena had made herself. On the frame of its glasses, there appeared to be two small containers. Both of them stood upright, neither moving. Ash grinned. He remembered this.

They stood like this for approximately 7 seconds, just long enough that people began to wonder if she was actually about to do anything, before Serena muttered under her breath, loud enough so that only Pancham could hear her. At the same time, she tapped her leg with her fingers. "One, two, three, go!"

Pancham burst into life, and began to perform the dance moves it had been showing off since it joined the group. After roughly 5 seconds, it leaped down from the podium it stood on, it's hands glowing, and upon hitting the ground, it went shooting right back up again on a rock, thanks to the use of its Stone Edge move. It created platforms which only got higher as they went up, until it reached the ceiling.

On the ground, Serena wasn't doing anything special in particular. She simply stepped down the podium, and closed her arms towards her waist, so that her left hand reached a container on the right hand side of her waist, and vies versa for the right hand. The pulled her arms back to their respective sides, and flicked the containers open, which had been filled with silver glitter, sending out a shot of silver glitter at 45 degree angles either side of her.

Up top, Pancham had removed the containers fixed to its glasses, which were also filled with glitter, and, instead of firing them in a straight line, Pancham's trajectory was more curved, into two semi circles, which met the lines Serena had fired. Pancham then leaped down, being caught by its trainer, then thrown forward into a flip, creating a platform with Stone Edge that raised both of them to the top.

Serena yelled out to her Pancham the only command it needed. "Use Dark Pulse!"

Pancham did as instructed, firing a Dark Pulse at the glitter lines, and it was only when this was done did the audience see the effects of their efforts.

A dark, Purple Heart, created from the light the Dark Pulse emitted, became visible. Upon further inspection also, the platforms Pancham had made had represented a stony backdrop, and the final platform stood in the center of it, when Serena and her Pokémon stood once the show was over.

The audience erupted into a explosion of applause and cheers. It had received the most positive response yet. Ash stood up from his seat, and cheered and clapped louder than anyone else in the entire Showcase hall. Serena was able to see him, and smiled softly, hoping he was proud of her.

* * *

The group walked together back to the Pokémon center, as Serena held onto a silver medal.

"Second place! That's incredible for a third time performer! It's practically never been heard of before!" Clemont praised her, congratulating her on her place In The showcase.

"Your performance was super pretty, Serena!" Bonnie added in, jumping up and down next to Serena.

Serena had achieved second place in the showcase. The very next performer after her had won the whole thing, using a fire display with an Arcanine. Serena was actually very proud of her placing this time. Second place, and taking away a silver medal from the event. It wasn't a gold medal, but it was something.

Ash couldn't stop himself from smiling at her ever since he had meet up with her again after the Showcase. So she hadn't finished first. So what? She had done her best, and came in second place. She had only just a small way to go to taking the gold next time.

"I thought you'd be upset with me because I didn't win..." Serena had said when Ash had congratulated her.

Ash had been simply dumbfounded. "Are you kidding me? That was incredible? Who cares that you didn't win? You gave it your all, and you didn't give in, and you were rewarded with second place! That means you've only got a small few steps to climb before you reach the top! Why would I be upset?"

Serena had began to tear up at his kind words, while saying, "You spent so much time training with me... Time you could have spent training for your next gym battle... I-" she had then been cut off by Ash kissing her lips, silencing her breaking voice. She had been shocked at first, her eyes wide open, but it hadn't taken her long to simply close her eyes and kiss Ash back.

Once they had separated, Ash smiled at her brightly, and gave her his toothy grin. "I couldn't be more proud to call you my girlfriend. No matter what happens, no matter how much time I spend training with you, no matter how much time it takes away from my training with my own Pokémon, I will never think any differently of you. I love you, Serena."

"Ash..."

Presently, Ash had been silently smiling at her, holding her right hand with his left, it their hands, they both held the neck holder of the silver medal, with the metallic part of the medal dangling below their intertwined fingers. Serena had insisted that they hold hands like this. It had been their win, not just hers, and this proved it.


	15. Chapter 15

The group walked on in silence. About a week after Serena's showcase performance, they had been traveling, and they were talking, laughing, and Ash and Serena would be holding each other's hands, one of them occasionally snuggling up close to the other, and commenting on how much they loved the other. It usually ended up in Bonnie making an embarrassing remark, but they still stayed close, never wanting to let the other one go.

Now, however, Ash walked behind the group, hands in his pockets, looking towards the ground. He hadn't said much. But it was perfectly understandable. No one held it against him. Recently, he had left Goodra back in its homelands, to be with its friends. Ash had made that choice alone, and while he knew he had done the right thing, it still depressed him. Goodra hadn't been around for very long, but he thought the two of them would make it to the Kalos league together. They had a bond. And it felt like it was gone.

Serena had never seen Ash spill tears before then. She had been sad to see Goodra to too, and she had cried as well, but to her, the sight of Ash spilling tears was not only depressing, but bizarre. He hadn't broken down crying, but it sure had been a first for him. She had hugged him tightly, trying to comfort him.

Now, he followed the group, keeping three or four paces back. The group had decided it was best to give him some space for a while. But Serena was worried about him. She had never seen him like this before. She was used to her energetic, happy-go-lucky, battle obsessed, dense boyfriend, walking next to her, with the group, talking about how excited he was to get to where ever it was they were going, and battling the gym leader there, with a smile on his face and a gleam in his brown eyes. She had grown used to his hands gently gripped around hers, his bare hands, as per Serena's request that he take his gloves off, intertwine their fingers, and never let go. He made her feel safe. The one thing she hadn't gotten used to, and was convinced she never would, was his now occasional habit of laying his head on her shoulder. It had been a little tricky for him to pull off, as he was a few centimetres smaller than she was, but he had managed it now. Every time he would say something like, "You look super pretty, Serena." Or, her personal favourite, a simple, "I love you, Serena." She had also made a habit of it, but Ash never seemed to mind. Now, she didn't have any of that. She couldn't even see his eyes, blocked by the cap her wore. The journey seemed a lot less fun without him, there was an emptiness in the group, that no one could quite fill like Ash could. She didn't blame him for being depressed... She just missed her happy go lucky boyfriend.

Even Pikachu left Ash be. Serena carried Pikachu in her arms, so he wouldn't get tired of walking. Ash not wanting to talk to anyone, not even Pikachu was a worrying sight to behold.

"Pika pi..." Pikachu muttered something to himself in Poké speak, while glancing back at his trainer. Serena noticed this, and forced on a smile.

"I'm sure he'll be fine. He just needs some time, I think." She told the worried electric type. Pikachu looked at her, nodded, and slowly looked forward again.

"I hope so." Clemont commented. "I've never seen him like this. It's... Unsettling, to say the least.

Bonnie silently nodded in agreement, deciding it best not to comment on the situation.

"I'm fine, guys. Really." Ash had looked up, and had forced a weak smile on his face. His words were weak, barely even audible.

Serena smiled kindly at him. A smile that showed sympathy and encouragement at the same time. "It's fine. None of us blame you, you know. We're just worried."

Ash let out a small sigh. "Sorry... I'll... I don't know, I'll try to be more... Myself?"

"You shouldn't force yourself to act in a manner that doesn't reflect you yourself." Clemont said. "It's unhealthy. Not to mention, obvious with you."

Ash let out a small, unenthusiastic chuckle. Serena smiled at him lightly. She placed Pikachu on the ground for a second. She walked over to him, and took both his hands into hers. She brought them together, then held them up in front of both him and her, causing him to look at what she was doing, and by extension, see Serena's face. She smiled at him, and tried to put on a cute face, which she did by tucking her chin into her neck, and looking at him, her pupils at the top of her eyes, all the while, giving him the same smile he normally blushed at. Her own cheeks went a light shade of pink, but that worked out fine for her, "Come walk with us, okay?"

Ash hesitated for a moment, before letting out a small sigh. "Alright. Okay, I'll walk with you."

Serena smiled at him, before pulling him along to rejoin Clemont and Bonnie. Pikachu jumped up onto Ash's head, letting out a cry of relief. Once they had rejoined Clemont and Bonnie, Serena urged onto Ash's arm, ensuring he couldn't get away from her, and rested her head on his shoulder, as she normally did. Pikachu smiled at this. "Pika pi, pi pi, pika?"

"Hey, quiet down, up there!" Ash hissed with a trace of humour in his voice, in response to Pikachu. Pikachu smiled and rested its head on Ash's. "What, am I everyone's pillow now?" Ash remarked sarcastically. That earned a laugh from Serena.

"See, you're already acting like normal." Serena smiled.

Ash gave her a small smile. "Yeah... Yeah, I suppose..." In reality, however, he wasn't feeling any better. He simply didn't want to worry Serena. He still felt terrible.

* * *

The group had arrived in the next town, Irashu town, within a few hours. It was here they planned to spend the night, and maybe the next day, depending on what they found. It was a relatively large town, just short in terms of population from becoming a city. It had everything you would expect a city to have. A carnival, shops, marketplaces, training fields, and leaving the city, was a nature park, filled with peaceful, wild Pokémon, which was considered by the town to be the perfect place to walk on a date, according to the information on Serena's tablet.

Serena wondered, would Ash want to go on a date with her here? It seemed to be the perfect place for one...

She looked at Ash as she thought this. He still seemed down, she had noticed that. Ash was good at hiding his emotions, but since becoming his girlfriend, Serena had become good at picking up on them. She could see the visible regret and upset he held. She sadly closed her tablet. Maybe not...

Clemont then interrupted her thoughts with news of the room situation. "Okay, we've gotten two rooms, me and Bonnie in one, and you two in the other, like normal. Serena, here's the key, catch." He tossed a key towards Serena. She caught it in one hand, and inspected the room number. Room 101.

"Easy enough to remember." She muttered to herself.

"You say that now." Ash commented. "I'll bet money you forget it before it gets dark."

"Hey, you want to sleep outside, wise guy?" Serena joked, holding up the keys in her hands, reminding him she was the only one who could access the room.

Ash forced a smile and put his hands up in a mock surrender. "Alright, I give."

"In any case, I'm going to take Bonnie and settle in." Clemont said.

"Aww, why do I have to go?" Bonnie whined.

"Because the last time I left you here while I dropped our things in our room, you were trying to make friends with a Stunfisk that tried to shock you." Clemont reminded Bonnie of a previous incident.

"Awwwwwwwwwww..." Bonnie moaned as she was dragged along by Clemont. Serena giggled at the younger girls actions, while Ash sat there, motionless. Serena's giggles soon ended. She sat closer to Ash, and leaned on him, resting her head on him again.

"Ashy, are you okay?" Serena asked him.

Ash tried to smile. "I'm fine. Don't worry."

Serena sighed. That was all she seemed to do lately.

* * *

Nighttime came sooner than expected. The group had split up, and Ash and Serena found themselves in their room. It wasn't a particularly large room, with only one bed, though they had gotten used to sharing one, and it was something they enjoyed doing. Tonight, however, Ash was feeling down. He was still upset about Goodra. He began to dwell on it. How long had it been since he had released a Pokémon? The last one was Lapras, wasn't it? And how long had it been since he had seen Lapras? Since Johto, right? Years ago. He was still convinced he had done the right thing, making Lapras leave, but there was sometimes a feeling he had, a feeling of regret, wishing Lapras was still his Pokémon. Still his friend.

"Ash, you're still upset." Serena said, insisting on it. She had mentioned it several times since entering the room.

"I'm not." Ash a tried to deny her, unsuccessfully.

Serena sat opposite him, and took ahold of his hands. They were warm, as usual. "Ashy, I'm your girlfriend. I know when you don't feel good. I've gotten used to it, like you know when I don't feel happy."

Ash didn't say anything in response to this. She was right, after all. He did know when she was upset.

"I hate seeing you like this, Ash... I want to help you. I like seeing you happy... "Serena said. She still didn't get a reply. "Ash... Don't you trust me?"

That caught Ash's attention. "Of course I trust you, Serena... Of course I do, you know I do!..."

"Then why won't you talk to me?..."

Ash was about to deny it, but sighed instead, realising it was pointless. His efforts to keep her from worrying had, in fact, made her worry more. "Okay, I'm upset. I'm depressed..."

Serena moved closer to Ash, holding onto his hands more. "Because of Goodra?"

Ash nodded. "I... Really cared for Goodra. I did I still do care about Goodra... I wanted Goodra to be happy, that's why I told him to stay at the swamp... Why I... Released him..."

Serena inched closer to him. She tried to make him feel comfortable. "But?..."

"...I don't know if I made the right choice leaving Goodra there. I don't know if I'm ever going to get another chance to see Goodra again. If Goodra would even recognise me if we didn't see each other again. I raised Goodra from a small, weak little Goomy, into a big Pokémon like Goodra..." Ash admitted, spilling out all his thoughts and emotions. "I... Don't know if a I made the right choice..."

Serena was close to tears. She held Ash tightly, hugging him, his head rested into her shoulder, and she rested her hands though Ash's hair. "Stop... Stop thinking like that... It hurts... To see you beat yourself up like this... You let Goodra go... Because you thought it was the right thing to do... You thought Goodra would be happier in the wetlands, with its friends, who knew it as a Goomy. You left Goodra there because it wanted to protect its friends... And you left him there... Because you thought it was right... No one can ever fault you for that. Not even Goodra can..."

Ash found himself with a small smile on his face. Only Serena could change his mood from chronically depressed to feeling better about himself.

"You'll see Goodra again. I know you will." Serena told him. She also hugged Ash a second time.

Ash smiled and returned the hug. "Thank you. You know just what to say."

Serena smiled, and went a light shade of pink. "I learnt that from you."

* * *

AAAAAY! I'm so sorry this is a day or two late. It might not bother you as much as it does me, but I'm pretty OCD about getting these out on time, so, for those of you who are a little bit annoyed, as you have every right to be, the reason is that my GCSE Art coursework has REALLY kept me busy this weekend, and by the time I went to sleep, which is when I normally write, I just blacked out, which is why this chapter is a bit shorter (that and I'm not too sure how long I could make this.)

This chapter focused on depression, something I'm too familiar with myself. It's something horrible, and you blame yourself for a lot of things, even when you know you did everything you could. I imagine Ash would have been depressed after the release of Goodra, despite knowing he did the right thing.

So, in other news, I've been asked to write a fanfic by someone who reads these stories, about Ash and Serena making a Poké vision video. I plan to do that, and I'll be working on it as opposed to 'Looks Don't Matter' for a little while. The title of this fanfic is going to be, 'Feelings In Motion'. So, look forward to that.

So, at any rate, I'll see you in the next few chapters! See ya!


	16. Chapter 16

There was something about waking up with Serena in his arms, who was still sleeping soundly, that Ash loved. He could never figure out what it was. Weather it was the fact he felt so lucky to have her, or because Serena was simply the best person he had ever met, or the even more simplified reason, because he loved her, was something he didn't know, and that he'd have to figure out himself. It was a mixture of all three, of course, but seeing her sleeping peacefully, and Ash thinking about how long he would get to see that calm, peaceful face for the rest of his life filled him with a calming joy.

She was still asleep. The only downside to this was that he couldn't move. Well, he could, but that would mean waking Serena, something at he had no intention of doing. Instead, he laid there.

He thought about Serena's words last night. How she had comforted him, what she had said. How she had made him think. She had single handedly cured him of his depression and negative thinking. He thought to himself, while he may never see Goodra again, they would always be friends. And even so... He had Serena.

"Chuuuuu..." Ash heard Pikachu stretch from the foot of the bed, before rolling over. He smiled, and stifled a chuckle to himself. And Pikachu as well.

Still, he felt bad. He felt guilty. Not to do with Goodra, but that he had caused Serena to worry. Serena above everyone else. Pikachu was used to seeing him like this, he had seen him like that a few times, and had assured Ash that he completely understood. Clemont was a gym leader, so he must have gone through spouts of depression like that. Bonnie had Clemont to explain it to her. For her age, she had been remarkably mature about the subject, no doubt due to Clemont's explanations. Or perhaps Dedene's own upset at Goodra's depart. Either way.

That just left Serena. Ash looked at her again. Even if she understood... It didn't sit right with him. She was his girlfriend. He shouldn't worry her like that. He never meant to make anyone worry at any point, but with Serena, it was different. He wasn't sure what he wouldn't do to ease her mind. He sighed and thought to himself. What could he do to make it up to her?

He was about to give up and go back to sleep some more, when he saw Serena's tablet on the desk to the right, just catching it from the corner of his eyes. He stared it down for a second. Debating internally. What's the harm? He reached over and grabbed it, flipped it open, and held it above him, so as not to wake Serena up with the light.

"What is there to do in this place?..." Ash muttered to himself. He flipped through the tabs already open. It was mostly travel guides and maps, aside from one. Emails. Ash intended to just skip right over it after realising what it was, but his eyes were grabbed by his name being written several times in it. It was a letter to her mother. Serena must have forgotten to send it last night.

'Dear Mom, we reached Irashu Town yesterday, which is on the way to Ashs next gym battle. Ash was really upset about something that had happened recently, something I think he finds personal, but I think I cheered him up. Which reminds me, you do remember Ash, right? Little bit shorter than me by about an inch, scruffy hair, handsome, cute boy, my old friend from camp."

Ash put the tablet down briefly. It occurred to him that they wouldn't have had time. This was a letter to confess their relationship to Grace. Ash went dark red. He knew he shouldn't read it, he knew he shouldn't... And yet... He sighed. Just this one time. He was curious to know what she thought of him in her private thoughts. In the end, human curiosity got the best of him, despite his best intentions.

'Well, Mom, I'm not too sure how to say it without either surprising you or making you disapprove, so I'll be blunt about it ; Me and him are dating now. Ash is my boyfriend. You've always told me I'm too young to have a boyfriend, but Ash makes me happy. He makes me feel safe, and I've always loved him. For a really long time. And now, I'm the happiest I've ever been. My only upset is that I may never get to truly convey just how much I love him. He means the world to me. Everything. I work ever stop loving him, and I won't let anything stop me. I thought you should know, that's all.'

The rest of the letter went into detail about her performances and their travels. Ash went a deep shade of scarlet. She had just essentially bragged about him to her mother.

Ash smiled at the letter, before letting out a sigh. "I'm gonna have to tell her I saw it." He decided. It would be a thousand times better than her finding out herself. Regardless of this, he continued searching on her tablet, making sure to avoid her email again, looking for something... "Gotcha." He smiled once he had found it. He read it briefly. Only needing a couple of things from the tablet before being satisfied, he put it back down in the desk where he had found it.

No sooner had he put it back on the table than Serena began to stir from her sleep. He shook for a second, gripped her hand into Ash's chest, before her body relaxed, and she opened her eyes, taking a second to blink away the sleep that was in her eyes, before looking up to Ash. "Morning, Ash..." She replied, very sleepily.

"Uh, morning, Serena." Ash said.

"What's wrong?"

Ash scratched his head and looked around the room. "Uh... I kinda have something to confess... I uh, kind of, sort of, saw your email to your mother."

"You did what?" Serena asked, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes. The tone wasn't an angry one, but one of genuine confusion. "What do you mean? What email?"

"I was using your tablet for something... And I accidentally scrolled onto your email tab, and saw what you wrote..."

Serena looked at Ash for a second, then shrugged. Maybe it was because she was so sleepy, but she didn't mind at all. "I thought I'd sent that..."

"Uh, I guess not. Here." Ash said, showing her the message, written and unspent. Serena re-read it quickly. He face went pink afterwards. "Oh. You saw this message?... Well... It's my fault for not making sure I sent it..."

"You're not mad?" Ash asked. He had honestly half expected a slap in the face. Most of the other girls he knew had requested - no, demanded their privacy to such matters.

Serena tapped the send button, and up came the little animation of a Pidgey delivering it to her mother. "Not at all." She smiled at Ash. "You know I don't hide anything from you. It's fine if you want to use it to look something up, I don't have any problem with it. You were honest at least, so I know I can trust you with it." She leaned in and kissed Ash's cheek. "So don't worry. What were you using it for, anyway?"

"Uh... I, um, kind of felt bad about you having to deal with me being depressed over the last few days. So... I wanted to take you out for a bit, see what's going on around the town." Ash explained. "As a way of saying sorry, I guess."

Serena's smile slowly grew larger as she rested her head on Ash's shoulder, and nestled herself under the nape of Ash's neck. "I'd wanted to go look around this place with you since we got here... I didn't ask because you were depressed." She closed her eyes with a smile and snuggled up closer to him. "Thank you."

Ash smiled. "I thought we could see this park the town seems proud of. It says it's nice for couples. I was thinking we could -"

Ash was cut off by Serena throwing herself into Ash in a grand big hug. "I love you Ash!"

"Oof! What's this for?"

"Well, we haven't actually been on a date yet, have we?"

Ash thought back. Thinking about it, she was right, they had been so focused on her showcase, then getting from one town to the next, they hadn't actually had time for a date since they were together. "Now that you mention it, no, we haven't."

Serena smiled. "I've wanted to see this park that's so famous here. I can't wait to see it!"

Ash smile back at her, happy he had made her happy. He was glad he had decided to do this. "Yeah, me neither."

* * *

Clemont and Bonnie had gone off on their own to explore the town. They had been planning to look around anyway, so Ash and Serena's date had title to no effect on them. They would have been stuck in the town anyway, so it had all worked out perfectly for everyone.

"Hey Ash, do you want me to look after Pikachu for you?" Bonnie had asked .ash before they had parted ways. "That way, you and Serena can be alone together." There was a slightly suggestive tone towards the end of that. Ash was becoming increasing concerned as to where the hell she had gotten these remarks from.

"Serena, what do you want?" Ash had asked. Serena was a little surprised that Ash asked her first. Usually he would go straight to Pikachu. She assumed Pikachu and Ash had talked recently, and Pikachu was fine either way. "It's fine with me either way." She answered, with a smile at Pikachu. She didn't mind if Pikachu was there, but she wouldn't mind Ash and her being alone either.

"What'dya think, buddy?" Ash asked his partner Pokémon.

"Pika pi, Pikachu." Pikachu had given his answer, jumping onto Bonnies head playfully,, making an excited squeal as it did so. "Pika pika, pika pi."

"Less sass, buddy. I'm starting to think Bonnies starting to rub off on ya." Ash said with a joking smile, getting a laugh from both Pikachu and Bonnie.

"We could look after the rest of your Pokémon was well if you'd like." Clemont offered.

Both Ash and Serena nodded to this suggestion. They handed their Pokéballs to Clemont, and Ash, seeing her wanting to help, gave one to Bonnie, containing his Fletchinder. "Be careful with him."

"I will, I will." Bonnie nodded.

And that was how Ash and Serena found themselves alone in a town they had never visited before, exploring the sites and investigating the sounds that surrounded them. Serena was hugged onto Ash's arm, holding it tightly, refusing to let go. Her grip was strong, and Ash doubted he could pry her off even if he had wanted to. At the same time, it was gentle too. It didn't feel forced at all.

The walked around the town, and occasionally pointed out something that interested either themselves or the other, showing it to the other person. With lots of shops and locations in this town, this happened fairly often.

It was evening before long. The couple had waited this long under a recommendation by the people in the town, and according to the information they had read. Serena flipped open her tablet. "If we go down this street, we should get to the park this town talks about so much."

The two walked down into the park together. It was said to bring an everlasting love to the couples who entered it. It's beauty was amazing. Natural lights from Pokémon like Volbeat and Illumise gave off a light that was dim, yet providing, allowing them to see where and what was going on. Trees and brush, well maintained, helped bring a serene calming influence to the park. A force, not a physical one, but one of the ones you could feel spiritually around you sometimes, provided the romantic feeling, setting and thoughts into each and every person who stepped foot within the gardens.

Ash and Serena barely said anything to each other after entering the garden. They didn't need to. The scenery spoke for itself. There wasn't a need to tell each other how beautiful the area was. They already knew.

They say together, leant on one another, and watched as the stars filled the sky overhead. They held their hands in one another's, and Serena rested her head on Ashs shoulder. It was beyond perfect. There was nothing either of them could even think of that they would want more than this moment right here. Not the Kalos league victory for Ash, nor the title of Kalos Queen for Serena. This moment was all they wanted. All they needed.

"Hey, Ash?" Serena said, interrupting their silence.

"Yeah, Serena?" Ash asked, still watching the sky.

"The sky is pretty, isn't it?"

"Yeah. Really pretty."

"...Am I...Pretty?"

Ash looked at an embarrassed Serena and smiled. He cupped her cheek with his hand and made her look at him, lightly pinching her cheek in the process "Oh Serena, I'd love you even if you weren't so adorable, if that's what you're asking."

Serena blushed, flustered, but smiling.

"You know," Ash said again, "I can't think of anything I'd rather be doing right now. Here, with you, in this park, feeling like this. I couldn't think of a better feeling."

"What about winning the Kalos league?" Serena questioned him, smiling as she took ahold of the hand Ash had on her cheek. Manipulating his own goal against him, she teased him in good humour.

"I'd give up that chance to see you happy. No question." Ash told her.

Serena hugged his arm. "The same here... I'd happily stop my performances if it meant you'd be happy."

The two of their faces were close enough to that their cheeks rubbed against one another's, like a Pikachu or a Dedenne. Ash spoke first. "You know I'd never ask you to give up your dream, right?"

Serena nodded. "Me neither."

The two looked up again into the sky. Serena saw a bright star in the sky. One that filled her with wonder. She had heard of the phrase, 'reach for the Stars' when she was little, and she had thought that stars were people who had reached the sky when she was little. She had always wanted to join them, until she learnt what stars really were. She recognised the star she saw as the North Star.

"Ash? Let's make a promise."

Ash turned to Serena. "What do you mean?"

Serena pointed, "You see that star?"

"Yeah."

"Well, let's make a wish on it."

Ash was confused, but Serena did a demonstration. She put her hands together, as though she were praying, and looked up to the star. "I promise that I won't ever stand between Ash and his dreams. I'll help him, and love him, until the day I die. One day, I'll look back up at this star, when I'm old and frail, and look back on my life with Ash, and realise I've had a long, perfect life, with the perfect guy."

Ash was genuinely moved by her words. "Serena..."

Serena smiled at him. "Your turn!"

Put on the spot, and put his hands together, and brainstormed for a few seconds. "I... I promise to... I promise to look after Serena. To never let her go, help her when she's down, pick her up when she falls, and help her every step of the way. I'll never stop Serena from reaching her dreams. I'll help make them come true. I love you, Serena."

The two of them looked each other in the eyes. Nothing else needed saying for the whole night.

A sharp bing noise filled the air. Serena's tablet before either of them could say anything to the other. Serena quickly looked for it, pulling out of her bag. Glancing at it, and reading for a couple of second, She smiled, before holding it out for Ash. "Here, have a look. I think you'll like this."

Ash took the tablet into his hands and scanned what Serena had just read. He found himself on one of Serena's emails for the second time today, on,y this time, she had been on the receiving end. Grace had replied. Ash didn't know when Serena had actually sent the message he had written, they had been together all day and he had never seen it with her. Grace had been surprisingly okay with the whole idea of the two of them dating, and apparently had a feeling that this was going to happen. She also had said she was glad Serena had chosen to defy her for something that truly made her happy, unlike the times when she was a child, who apparently defied her for the sake of it.

Ash's grin grew wider every word he read. He passed it back to Serena, who smiled back at him. Grace had been one story. Ash thought to himself about his own mother. How would she take it? He wasn't worried about it that much, unlike Serena would have been, his mother wasn't that type of person, but he could think of a few people who might over react...

* * *

How'd you like that one guys? Next chapter, I'll be doing a few things different, including the setting and the theme I usually work with in these chapters, as what I'm gonna write is important to the story. This is the main point where I think things would go way off course, but it's for a couple of chapters. I'm actually really excited to get writing them. It's going to be a bit of a personal wish list for Ashs final lengths of his Kalos journey. Trust me, this is gonna be fun. We're creeping up on the end, unfortunately, but don't worry guys, I'll make more Amourshipping stories. OTP.

Remember to check out my profile for links to more content I do, and review this is if you enjoyed it. As always, see you next chapter! See ya!


	17. Chapter 17

Months after their promise, Ash found himself in Lumious City. He had grown since then, a couple of inches, now slightly taller than Serena. He had teased her about that a couple of times, but not too much. It suited Serena, honestly. She wasn't too keen on being taller than Ash. She actually liked being a little shorter than Ash. Not too much shorter though. Ash occasionally got up on his toes and teased her, saying he now 'towered over her', which annoyed her sometimes.  
Ash had experienced everything the Kalos region had thrown in his way. Every battle had lead up to this moment. His Pokémon, the new friends who had joined him on his journey as well, all were ready to fight next to him. Excitement ran through Ash's blood, through his veins, like an energy source that fuelled him.

"Well Ash, you're finally here." Serena chirped in. "You've worked hard for this."

Ash smiled at her. "Yeah! Now it's time." He walked forward, facing the giant dome in front of him. Lights surrounded the area, illuminating the area fully. Many Pokémon trainers surrounded them, talking with their Pokémon and fellow trainers. Stands selling food and merchandise were scattered around the area too, getting good business, in particular, one stand with a blue haired man, a red haired woman, a short person, and a Wobbuffet. Traditional Kalosian events took place outside the dome, jam packed with Pokémon fans.

Clemont looked around him. He had seen many Kalos leagues during his time as gym leader, and he had gotten used to the festivities. All the same, this year looked to be exceptionally brutal. Trainers from all over the region, and from different parts of the world had showed up for this years, some in possession of some particularly powerful Pokémon."It looks like it's gonna be a hard year for you, Ash. I don't think I've seen such stiff competition in my life."

Ash stared at the sight of the Kalos League. He grinned to himself, glancing at his gym case. All eight hard fought battles were memories in his sentimental badges. He looked up. "Well, it's no fun if it's not a challenge." He made a fist with his right hand. This was it. But he decided, he was gonna need a little extra firepower. "First things first though. I'm gonna need to make a phone call."

* * *

Ash was nervous while he dialled in the numbers to Professor Oaks lab. He hadn't called home since he and Serena had gotten together. In fact, he hadn't called home since he was in Lumious City, just starting out his journey in Kalos, nearly a year ago. None of his friends in Pallet had met Serena, and she had no idea who he was even calling. He had insisted on keeping it a secret, for reasons known only to himself. He wanted to see if Oak remembered Serena from their camp.

"RAAATATATATATA!"

Serena, Bonnie and Clemont all screeched and jumped back from the monster out of surprise of what had just happened. Ash nearly jumped back from the video screen, but then he realised who it was. He then sighed and happily responded "Hello again, Rotom. Good to see you."

"You know that thing?" Clemont asked Ash. He was still maybe two or three metres away from the screen. He had shot back the furthest.

Ash nodded. "That Pokémon belongs to a friend of mine. It's a Rotom, that's all."

"Rotom, stop playing around with the phone! I swear, some day you'll give someone a panic attack if you keep doing that." Ash heard Professor Oaks voice scolding Rotom before his face ever appeared on screen, though he could see his hands and arms removing Rotom from the viewing station. Upon seeing it was Ash, Professor Oak gave him a great big smile. "Well, if it isn't Ash!"

Ash smiled. "Hey Professor!"

"It's been a long time since I heard from you, my boy. How have you been in the Kalos region? I assume you've been working hard and catching lots of new Pokemon?"

"Oh yeah! I've gotten all 8 gym badges needed to enter the Kalos league. I'm actually ready to go soon." Ash informed his old friend. He held up his badge case as proof.

"Ah yes, I've heard about that."

Ash raised an eyebrow. "You have? How the heck have you done that?"

Oak seemed to type into a keyboard and click, bringing something up on a computer monitor. "I've been getting regular emails from someone who claims to know you. A woman called Grace, I believe."

"My mother?"

Serena jumped in view of the screen, budging past Ash. She was now in the call so anyone on the other side could see her. Upon seeing her, Professor Oak raised an eyebrow. It became clear to Ash that he hadn't told anyone back home he was traveling with friends. He had done it so often, had had almost gotten into the idea of them simply assuming he was traveling in a group.

"Eh? And who would this be, Ash?" Professor Oak asked. His voice was kind, and although his words would be considered rude and uncomplimentary by most other people, Ash felt no offence by it. He was used to it.

"This is Serena. I met her when I came here to Kalos. She's been traveling with me. Speaking of which..." Ash gently pulled Serena to one side, so Clemont and Bonnie could be seen. "This is Bonnie and Clemont, they've been with us as well. Clemont's one of the gym leaders here in Kalos. He's also an inventor. Pretty sure he's a fan of your work." Clemont had never mentioned it, but his inventions reminded occasionally of things he had seen in Professor Oaks labs. In addition, it felt pretty obvious. Everyone had heard of Professor Oak, after all.

"It is truly an honour to meet you, professor!" Clemont said, almost standing at attention. As an inventor, he he always admired Oaks research, even from Kalos.

"The honours all mine, it's always a pleasure to meet some of Ash's friends." Professor Oak smiled brightly at the young group in front of him.

"Uh, Professor Oak?" Serena spoke up. A change of pace from her usual attitude, or at least the one she had grown accustomed to around Ash, she was shy. "I don't know if you remember me, but I went to your summer camp a few years ago. The girl with the straw hat, who got lost in the forest?"

Professor Oak looked at her carefully, as if he was comparing her to an old information file. He seemed to scan her, looking for a match. He suddenly leaked back in his chair and snapped his fingers. "Ah, yes, I remember you now! You're the young lady who Ash helped, aren't you?"

Serena nodded. "Yep, that's me! And I think it might be my mother whose been sending you those messages. If you don't mind, what exactly do they say?"

"They're just information messages, telling me how Ash has been getting on. Strange though. I couldn't think of a reason why she would feel the need. I can't think she had any personal ties to you, Ash." Professor Oak admitted.

"Oh, give it a minute." Ash muttered to himself. He then spoke up. "So Professor, is everyone doing okay?"

Professor Oak smiled. Of course this would be why Ash had called. "Why, everyone is doing great Ash. Why, did you want to make some transfers?"

Ash held up a Pokèball, with a grin. "Defiantly. It's some stiff competition this time around, so I'm gonna need a bit of help from some of my old friends."

"Ah, that reminds me, Ash. I've got some people here who want to speak with you." Oak informed. He then gestured over to someone, before getting up and walking behind his chair.

"Aaaaash!"

Ash's face went pale. "Oh no..." This was what he had been afraid of. "Hi mom."

Delia smiled warmly at her son. It had been a long time. "Have you been keeping safe over there?"

Ash nodded. "Yes Mom, I've been careful." Ash noticed Serena stifling a giggle to herself. Considering the amount of dangerous situations they had found themselves in while traveling, he couldn't say he was surprised.

"Hmm? Who is this cute lady?" Delia asked, referring to Serena. The compliment caused Serena to blush. She smiled and responded with a happy and joy filled tone. "My name is Serena! It's nice to meet you!"

"Serena? Wait, you're Ash's old friend from camp, aren't you? I've heard so much about you! Ash wouldn't stop talking about you the entire time you were there!"

Ash felt his eyes twitch, his cheeks redden in embarrassment, and under his breath, he cursed his mothers loud mouth. "Shut up, please..." He quickly cursed. He then realised there was going to be no way around it. He was going to have to tell her here and now. Knowing his mother, she would probably get all sorts of ideas in her head. Better to lay it all out in front of her right now. "Uh, Mom? I've kind of got something to confess. I would have told you sooner, but, uh... I've been a little busy."

He glanced at Serena. It was all she needed to know. She understood what was about to happen.

"Oh? What is it, Ash?" Delia inquired.

Ash tried to find his voice, but to little avail. "Uh, well, you see... Uh... It's like this..."

Serena smiled at her boyfriends stuttering. She took ahold of his hand, interwinding their fingers, and held it up for her to see. Ash was taken aback by this déjà vu of when they told Clemont and Bonnie, and then, in true memory of that moment, scratched the back of his neck in embarrassment and have out a nervous chuckle. "Eh heh heh heh heh... This..."

Delia seemed to take a moment to register what she had seen, but then uncontrollably smiled. "Well, that was certainly a revelation. I didn't expect my Ash to have found a girlfriend while in Kalos."

Professor Oak, who could be seen behind Delia, was smiling a smile of pride, like a grandfather.

Serena smiled. "Well, we are known as the region of love." She then hugged onto Ash who was still nervously laughing. "And I love your son. I love Ash."

Ash, stopping his nervous laughter, put his hand on Serena's head, pulling her closer to him. "And I love Serena."

Clemont smiled and said to them, "I've never seen two people more compatible in all my life."

Bonnie started to laugh. "You should see them when we were traveling! All lovey duvy, all the time!"

"Bonnie, shush!" Clemont ordered his younger sibling, but had to do so while holding back laughter.

Delia smiled greatly at her son and his girlfriend. "My Ash is all grown up! He's finally found himself a beautiful girlfriend! Oh, I'll have to give you all of his favourite receipts, I can promise you he'll fall in love with you even more! Why, he had an adorable crush on one of the waitresses here because she brought him his favorite dish from the restaurant whenever he went."

"Yeah, you can stop humiliating me anytime now, Mom!" Ash yelled in, flustered by his mothers words, causing laughter from both his mother and Serena. He muttered to himself, "I'm dreading the day when these two meet."

"Good luck in the Kalos League, Ash! I'd better go, there's a lot of people here waiting to talk to you!" Delia smiled.

"Exactly who IS there?" Ash questioned.

"It might be easier if we switch you to the bigger monitor in the next room." professor Oak chimed in. "Give us a second, and we'll patch you through."

Ash and Serena stood in front of the minister, Ash, rattling his head for who it might be. An amount of people large enough to need the second monitor, a larger monitor In the next room. Ash thought. Then it clicked. "No way..."  
Static ensured. Then, a couple of seconds later, a large group of people, all familiar faces to Ash, appeared on the screen. They had been talking amongst themselves, but their heads shot up as soon as the call cleared up.  
Everyone he had ever traveled with. And there was everyone. Misty, Brock, Tracey, May, Max, Dawn, Iris, and Cilan.  
"Oh, my God!" Ash grinned in pleasant surprise and happiness. "Everyone!"

A resounding cheer filled up the communication. All of Ash's closest friends had gathered in one place.  
"It's been a long time, Ash!" Brock spoke first. His familiar voice almost threw Ash on a nostalgia trip all on its own.

"And it's been longer for me. It's great to see you!" Misty waved at Ash, smiling at him. it had been way too long since Ash had seen Misty.

"Sorry it's been so long! I've been working hard!" May spoke up next, waving with both her arms. The girl who had shown Ash what it meant to be a co ordinatior. On reflection, the girl who had helped him help Serena.

"It's good to see you, Ash!" Max chimed in next, jumping just barely into view of the camera. He was as energetic as ever, Ash noted.

Dawn was next. "I haven't heard from you in a while, Ash! It's great to see you're well!" The other co ordinator, who had shown Ash the best of the best of contests. Someone he had gotten his few sets of contest skills from watching.

"And I might say, you're looking better than ever, Ash!" Cilan said, striking one of his connoisseur poses, which seemed to freak everyone who wasn't familiar with him out. Instead, it made those who were familiar with him sweat drop in amusement.

"Sheesh, Cilan. I'd expect that kind of thing from Ash. You haven't grown up at all, have you? You've turned into such a little kid." Iris scolded Cilan, before turning towards Ash, who was grinning at Cilan taking his old punishment. "Don't you get any ideas, you're still just a little kid as well!" Iris yelled at him.

"Hello to you too, Iris." Ash responded with a grin. All his friends, old and newer, all together in one place. None of them had changed a bit. Everyone! Well, this is a shock to say the least! What're you all doing here?"

"Well, this isn't everyone. A couple of other familiar faces said they were going on a walk around the place to clear their heads. They've been waiting her a while." Brock told him.

"They should be back soon, right?" May asked Brock. "They've been gone a while."

"They'll be back any moment." Misty said, shrugging the two off.

"We all got called here by your mother." Dawn told Ash. "Professor Oak has been getting messages from someone, and they told him that you was going to be at the Kalos League soon. So Oak told your mother, and she called us all here."

"Well, I can't tell you how much it means to me to see you all here." Ash smiled greatly at all his friends. He was about to introduce Serena, who had been unusually quiet, when he saw the door behind everyone open. Three figures walked in.

"What the?" Ash questioned the threes presence.

"Aww, did we miss the pickup call from Ashy-boy?"

"Hmm, late as usual."

The final figure didn't say anything as they walked in.

"Gary? Paul? Trip? What the heck are you guys doing here?" Ash asked, in shock. There they were, three of his biggest rivals over his journeys. All of them walked right in. Gary had been researching Pokémon with his grandfather, so it he wasn't exactly a rival anymore, but they had the friendly battle now and then. Trip and .ash hadn't gotten along to start with, but the rivalry they had turned friendly towards the .unova league, since the Unova Champion had humbled him. He was now a much more friendly person, and they had parted on good terms. Lastly was Paul. He hadn't said anything when he walked int he room. He was the only person in the room to have undergone a change in his appearance, albeit small overall. He had grown his hair longer than it was, a similar length now to that of Serena's. But there was a bigger change. When he and Ash met, they had immediately detested the others guts. After a while, it had become a full blown rivalry, but after his victory against Paul in the Sinnoh League, the two had come to respect one another. Though it was the only one of his rivalries Ash would be hesitant to use the word friendly on, but now, seeing him, Ash couldn't help but smile.

"Long, and honestly, quite complicated stories." Trip answered, in his usually reserved manner. "Put simply, I felt like coming out here to do some training, see what these boonies was made of. Strong stuff, it turns out. Ended up running into these two while I was here." He gestured to Iris and Cilan. Iris seemed a bit annoyed he hadn't bothered to use their names. "They told me while they were here, so I decided to tag along. Figured it'd be interesting to see how I stack up against you now. I'm not how I was back in Unova."

Ash grinned. "Trust me, I've gotten a whole lot stronger too, Trip! Just you wait till I get back to Kanto, and I'll show you first hand!"

Trip grinned back at Ash. "I'm looking forward to it."

Ash moved past Gary. It was fairly obvious what he was doing here, he did live there after all. So he went straight to ask Paul. "What about you Paul? What're you doing in the Kanto region?"

Paul seemed to stare Ash down for a second. Glancing at him, as if analysing him. "Before I tell you anything," he said, then pointing. "Are you going to tell us who the girl you've got around your arm is?"

Ash and Serena froze. They had only just realised they had still been in contact the entire call. It was the first time everyone else in the room seemed to notice Serena for the first time too. They had all been caught up in their reunions with Ash, they hadn't even seen the girl next to him. Or the people behind him for that matter. Ash and Serena rapidly separated, both of them nearly standing to attention, both red with embarrassment. Ash laughed nervously and scratched the back of his neck. "My bad, I should probably introduce everyone on my end. Sorry, guys." He said in apology to both his friends in Kanto, and his friends in Kalos He turned to his Kalosian friends. "This is Clemont, and his sister Bonnie. These guys are my friends from all over the regions I've traveled to." He said, introducing the two siblings first. They were the easy ones. They had a brief introduction with Ash's old friends. Now came the embarrassing part. It was much easier than telling his mother, but still nerve racking.

"And this is Serena. " he said, showing them to her, and vise versa. "She's my uh... She would be my... Girlfriend."

There was a very mixed response, though all of them passive or positive. May was the first one to voice her opinion, though it had been a near deafening squeal of joy. She had always been a romantic type, and Ash was the last person she had expected to have a girlfriend. Brock had laughed, both impressed and slightly agitated that Ash had gotten a girlfriend before him. He almost felt proud of him. Dawn responded in a manner similar to Brock's, happy for Ash. Misty was passive in her response, smiling for him, but not making a big deal out of it like May or Dawn were. Cilan and Iris were happy for him, and Ash could have sworn he heard Iris mutter something about him not being such a little kid anymore. Garry, Paul and Trip were completely neutral however. Paul was satisfied he had received an answer. In turn, he gave Ash one, after everyone had calmed down. "Basically the same as Trips, only I planned to come here from the start. Felt like having a rematch. Only I found everyone here."

At that point, Professor Oak stepped into the room, followed by Delia."Glad to see you're all reacquainted, but Ash, I imagine you're quite busy at this time, so, shall we begin the transferring of Pokemon?"

Ash nodded, remembering the reason for his phone call in the first place. He arranged to send home his five Pokémon on him, in exchange for five of his staying at the lab. They arranged everything, and Ash hung up the call. He let out a huge sigh of relief. "That went... Better than I expected." He told Serena, then planted a kiss on her cheek. "Looks like everyone likes you. That makes things a lot less difficult for us."

"Why, what if they hadn't liked me?" Serena asked Ash.

Ash sighed and smiled. "Then I wouldn't be seeing them for a very, very long time." He looked at her. "If they didn't like you, then I wouldn't be speaking to them again. Simple as that."

"Ash, you shouldn't plan to end your old friendships because of me..." Serena said, guilt evident in her voice. She felt like she was nearly the source of an internal conflict for Ash, and that he would have to choose between two sides.  
"Serena, I don't plan these things... But you're the most important person in the world to me. That's worth more to me." Ash told her, his voice gentle and reassuring. "You wouldn't be the reason I loose friends. The reason would be that they wouldn't accept you as you are. That's what would end it. Listen, Serena... You're the one I'd choose. Every time. Never feel like you're causing me problems. You never do, and even if you were, they would all be worth it."

Serena felt her heart beat hard, as she took in all of Ash's words.

"Now c'mon." Ash told her, holding her hand. "I've got some more friends of mine I'd like you to meet."

* * *

"Your Pokémon are certainly..." Clemont struggled to find the right word, without sounding like he was trying to offend Ash. "...Unique."

Several rotations of reunions with Ash's Pokémon had taken place. Their unique personalities and traits had come as a surprise to everyone else, and their ways of showing affection to their trainer often brought him pain. To give examples, Gible had bit him, Gliscor had landed on him, Glalie had frozen him, Muk had nearly suffocated him and Tarous has trampled on him... Several times. Other Pokémon, like Oshawatt, hadn't been as brutal, but had been a bit of a nuisance in dealing with, as Oshawatt was so excited, it took a lot of calming down. Others like Oshawatt included Totodile, Corphish and Bayleaf.

Ash took no offence at Clemont's comment. In fact, to him, it felt more like a compliment. "Yeah, they're a crazy bunch, aren't they?" He grinned, remembering all the times he had had with his Pokémon friends over the years.  
Serena had paid close attention to the Pokémon Ash had called over. She had no idea he had so many, and such a large variety of them. She had never even heard of some of the Pokémon Ash had, like a Leavany or ever seen a Quilava before. It was beyond incredible to her. Ash had done so much, seen so much, and traveled all across the world, and she had hardly even started in comparison.

"They're all so cute!" Bonnie commented, while she met Ash's Quilava. "I'll bet they're super strong too!"

"You'll find out when we have our first battle." Ash teased the young sibling, hiding his Pokèmon's power from her.

"When is your first battle anyway, Ash?" Serena asked Ash, scanning for his names through the time tables. There were a lot of matches in the first round. Serena knew that was how it would be, but she didn't like it. The more people Ash had to battle, the more likely it was he went up against someone he would struggle against.

Ash glanced at the timetable. "There I am. 10th battle, battlefield A. " he pointed at his name and picture. "And I'm against someone called... Keith Larige." Ash grinned. "So, he's the one I'm taking down."

Ash's Buizel, located next to Ash, stared down his trainers opponent, gritting its teeth at the next challenge Ash had to face. He then slammed a fist into its open paw. One of his most battle loving Pokémon, Buizel had grown impatient, and had a longing for a good fight. "Bui Bui!"

Such battling bravado came as a surprise to Serena, Clemont and Bonnie, but Ash just grinned. Buizel's enthusiasm for battle was something Ash liked. It reminded Ash of himself. "Oh yeah, Buizel. I know how you feel. Right then, if that's how you feel, I've decided, I'm gonna use you in the first round!"

Happy and excited by his trainers decision, Buizel pumped it's fist towards Ash. "Bui Bui!"

"How many Pokémon are you allowed to use in the first matches?" Clemont asked, unfamiliar with the rules this year around. They changed every year, to keep things interesting.

"Three." Ash answered. "And I've already decided who I'm gonna use." Ash said with a grin. He looked back on his previous adventures, and how hard he had fought in all of them, only to come short. Kalos had been so different. He looked at his Pokémon, who had forever been with him, fighting and working hard for their trainer. They deserved to taste victory. Ash looked at Serena. He wanted to make her feel pride in him. He had more than enough motivation. He then made a fist with his right hand. "This time, I'm winning the league."

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen, children, and Pokémon, it is my greatest pleasure, and distinct honour to welcome you all to the Kalos league!" The Announcer boomed all across the stadium, his voice echoing all around. "That's right, only the strongest trainers in the Kalos league are eligible to enter the Kalos league, and what a turn out we have this year! We have over a hundred competitors, proven to be the best of the best in Kalos! In this tournament, they will be pitted against each other, to find out who is truly worth of the title Kalos Champion!"

All 136 competitors stood in a group inside the master dome. Ash had separated from Serena, Clemont and Bonnie, who watched him from the sidelines. The stadiums were packed full of people from all over the world to see the battles go down in the Kalos league, more so than any or league Ash had ever been to. The competition was thick, and very tough. Some of the trainers had years in comparison to Ash's years old experience. Yet he would not falter, not be deterred.  
"The first rounds will begin immediately!" The Announcer proclaimed, after the match ups had been shown on the big screen, showing everyone who would face who. "The first round will cut down our current 136 competitors down by half. Each trainer will be allowed the use of three Pokemon! We hope to see a large number of intense battles from this years league! So, without further ado, let's start the battles, and welcome, everyone, once again, to the Kalos league! Let the league begin!"

A chorus of cheering erupted from the stands. Ash swallowed. This was it.

* * *

His first battle was about to begin. He walked into the battlefield, greeted by the crowd cheering him on. He waved to the crowd, secretly looking for his friends. Ash managed to find them, on the front rows, waving towards him. He clenched his fist by his pockets. He was excited, yet terrified. Nothing new for a league, but this felt different somehow. Was it to do with Serena? No matter, even if it were.

His opponent was Keith Larige. He was a tall, blond haired, pale skinned individual, whose very appearance radiated arrogance. His clothing was worn, and baggy, and he had clearly made no attempts to look presentable to anyone for the league to begin, which Ash found insulting. Heck, at least he had the decency to put on a freaking belt if it was obvious his clothing required it, or at the least dust his cloths down if they were dusty. Keith, however, appeared untroubled with looking like a punk. His eyes held a lazy demeanour, and his jeans were town. He was a punk, by appearance alone. The way his stood, the way he looked at Ash, and the way he grinned when he saw he was dealing with a boy from Kanto.

"So, I'm guessing the Kanto region didn't like a weak trainer like you ruining its reputation any more than it already has been. That's the only reason I can think you'd dirty Kalos with your mere presence." Keith greeted Ash from across the battlefield. Ash remained silent. "Of course," Keith continued, "You must have some skill to have gotten here. That, or ,maybe you stole your gym badges to gain entry here. Look at you. You couldn't beat a preschooler, let alone a gym leader."

Serena was appalled by the language Keith was using. Ash hadn't even said a word to defend himself, and he hadn't even done anything to offend this Keith person. So why was he being so cruel? She felt anger rise up in her. How dare he talk like that about Ash? He had no idea what he was in for!

Ash calmly reached for a Pokèball. He clicked on it, expanding the Pokèball to its release / capture size, then held it in Keith's general direction. Then, the floodgates opened. "You talk a big game. Let's see if you can back it up with your battling! I'll show you what this 'Kanto boy' is made of!"

The referee recapped the rules - A three on three battle, winner takes all. Exchanges allowed, and the winner is the one who knocks out his opponents Pokémon first. Raising the flag, he flew it in the air, yelling "Begin!"  
Ash grinned, and pulled the Pokèball back behind him, then throwing it out into the battlefield. "Noivern, I choose you!"  
A dazzling light emerged, revealing Ash's dragon type Pokémon taking to the skies. It let out a shrill cry, then landed in front of its trainer.

Keith threw out his Pokèball too, yelling, "Arcainine, let's go!"

A similar light appeared, then, as quickly at it appeared, disappeared, revealing the legendary Pokemon, Arcainine, which let loose a loud howl, signalling its readiness for battle.

Ash waited. He waited for Keith make the first move. He and Noivern had practiced this strategy a hundred times. It was just about waiting for the perfect moment to get in a counter attack. Noivern had control of the skies, so that gave it a huge advantage right off the bat.

"Arcanine, use Extreamespeed, now!" Keith commanded.

Arcanine began moving, lightning quick, appearing and then disappearing as quickly as it appeared and disappeared repeatedly, surrounding Noivern.

"Noivern, use Boomburst!" Ash shouted.

Noivern arched itself backwards, and gathered in air. Serena, Clemont and Bonnie all pre- emptily covered their ears. Noivern arched forward, and let out a shrill shriek, causing violent vibrations in the air, inflicting damage onto the opposing Arcanine, stopping it In its tracks. It began to be pushed back by the sound waves alone. Noivern had practiced doing this constantly with Ash, honing it down to be the perfect sound based move.

"Arcainine, use Flamethrower! Scorch that oversized bat!" Keith shouted to his Pokémon. Arcainine obeyed, and began to charge up fire.

Ash decided to have Noivern let up the attack in order to escape damage. "Dodge, then get ready to use Supersonic once you're in the clear!"

Noivern let up its relentless attacks, then began to flap its wings, taking flight just narrowly avoiding the Flamethrower attack. However, the opposing Arcainine dragged the attack into the air, causing a direct hit on Noivern, who went crashing down to the ground. The attack, though not very effective, had caused a lot of damage, and had hindered Noivern's ability to fly. It's wings in particular had been damaged, and Ash had a suspicion that it had been intentional, to limit Noivern's speed and maneuverability.

"Noivern!" Ash yelled out to his wounded Pokémon. "Are you alright? Can you still go on?"

Noivern stood on its feet, still reeling from the damage it took from the .flamethrower attack. Being a dragon type, it had some immunity to it, but not enough to shrug off such a strong Flamethrower. However, Noivern refused to give in, and stood tall. If he couldn't fly, he's have to stand and fight, "Vern! Noivern!"

"How is that oversized bat still standing? No Pokémon has managed to stand up to Arcainine's Flamethrower like that before, especially not flying types! We trained specifically to pinpoint their weaknesses! How is that Noivern still able to continue?" Keith wondered aloud. His Arcainine's face reflected this shock.

"Noivern never gives up, that's how!" Ash declared, and grinned at his dragon type, who grinned right back. "Alright, Noivern, get ready to counter its next move!"

"Counter this! Extreamespeed, go, Arcainine!" Keith ordered once again. This time, with Noivern grounded, there should be no way for Extreamspeed to miss its target.

Arcainine obeyed its masters orders, and began to move at lightning speeds, duping Noivern, coming in from one side, and attacking from the other. Speed so fast, you would need a watch to slow down time to see it. Several attacks hit Noivern directly, causing a great deal of damage to the dragon, but still, it stood its ground. All the time, it was calculating where Arcainine would strike from next, getting the rhythm and the timing right.

"Use Dragon Claw!" Ash shouted.

Noivern's claws began to glow, then, without warning, struck the opposing fire type, with a sharp and swift attack, knocking the Arcainine back, catching it off guard.

"Wrap this one up, Noivern!" Ash yelled, preparing his final attack. Noivern already knew, and began to charge up its attack. Ash punched the air in front of him as he gave Noivern its final move. "Use Dragon Pluse!"

A purple glow began to form inside Noivern. Energy. Pure, dragon energy. It was focused and refined, and made up of sheer power. All at once, this energy found its way to Noivern's mouth, who launched the energy at Arcainine. A huge explosion followed suit, leaving the battlefield covered in dust, before settling, revealing an unconscious Arcainine.

"Arcainine is unable to battle, the winner is Noivern!" The referee declared, holding up a green flag, indicating a point to Ash. Noivern celebrated its victory in its own way, while Ash pumped his fist. One down, two to go.

* * *

Serena cheered from the sidelines, coming dangerously close to jumping for joy. "Way to go Ash and Noivern!" Her spirits had been lifted. Ash and Noivern had won their first battle easily. It looked like this Keith character had been nothing but talk after all.

"This isn't a time for them to be getting complacent yet, Serena." Clemont said, analysing the battlefield. "Ash can't get overconfident. Noivern took a lot of damage during that battle with Arcainine. It's going to take a long time before Noivern is ready to battle again at maximum capacity. But there's something else..."

Bonnie and Serena glanced at each other, with a mixture of confusion and worry. Bonnie asked first. "What is it, big brother?"

"That Arcainine only used two attacks, attacks that should theoretically have next to no damage on a Pokémon like Noivern, especially not Ash's. You've seen Noivern take hits like that, no problem. But that's what worries me. Attacks that are at a type disadvantage doing that much damage. But that Arcainine only used those two attacks, Flamethrower and Extreamespeed. What about the other two attacks it should have? Why didn't Keith make Arcainine use them? Arcainine are capable of learning some powerful attacks. Attacks that should damage a Noivern for some serious damage. Furthermore, he saw Arcainine was at a disadvantage against Noivern. Why didn't he switch out into something with an advantage? Something with aerial mobility would have been ideal. I have a theory..."

Clemont was silenced by Keith returning his Arcainine.

* * *

He smiled at his Pokèball, muttering something to it, before putting it away and reaching for a second Pokèball. "Nidoking, let's go!" He threw the Pokèball into the sky, where it span multiple times, before releasing the Pokémon onto the battlefield.

Ash noticed that the Nidoking looked powerful indeed. Noivern would need time to rest. "Noivern, return!" He said, returning his dragon to his Pokèball. "You were great. Now get some rest, I'm gonna need you again soon." He then grabbed another Pokèball, and threw it into the sky. "Tarous, I choose you!"

His hot headed, trampling, short tempered bovine Pokémon appeared before him, letting out a loud battle cry.  
"Hah! Big mistake, Kanto boy! Nidoking, use Focus Punch!" Keith yelled, and his Nidoking laughed alongside him. It got ready to strike.

"Okay Tarous, let's show them just how much stronger you are!" Ash encouraged his Pokémon, which responded with a loud battle cry. A cry of power, a cry of dedication. A cry of victory. "Use Bulldoze!"

Tarous stood atop its hind legs, and waited for Nidoking to come closer, when mere metres away, Tarous slammed into the ground, causing a disruption in the ground surrounding them both. Nidoking, who was weak to ground type attacks, was damaged sufficiently, and fell backwards, ruining its Focus Punch attack, and causing damage to it in addition.

"Next, use Take Down, Tarous!" Ash ordered, issuing command after attack. Tarous followed its instructions perfectly.

"Grab ahold of that Tarous, Nidoking, and don't let let go!" Keith Commanded, and Nidoking obeyed. It held its ground strong against the Tarous, entering a stalemate, neither willing to give or loose ground. The two powerhouses went head to head, refusing to budge and inch. Whenever an inch was taken from one side, the other took it right back. This was the kind of battle Tarous loved, and it's motivation to win was unrivalled. But Nidoking and Keith had strategy on their side.

"Fell right for it. Now your Tarous can't move! Nidoking, use Thunderbolt!" Keith ordered. Holding onto Tarous, Nidoking would be able to conduct its electricity into Tarous directly, meaning the volts had less distance to travel, and would loose less volts and power, and therefore cause more damage to Tarous. Indeed, Tarous' stand broke once the Thunderbolt struck him, and Nidoking used that opportunity to push Tarous back. Tarous attempted to hold its ground, but the attack had weakened it, and thrown it off balance, so it was unable to stand strong.

"Tarous! Hang on! " Ash shouted,retrying to boost Tarous' resolve to stand its ground, but to no real avail. Tarous was being pushed back rapidly, nothing was going to help. Ash's mind began to race. The only way he could pull this back was by knocking Nidoking off guard. So, how could he do it? "Tarous, hang tough! Use Fissure!"

Tarous let out a loud cry as it mustered every last bit of its energy left as it prepared its strongest of attacks. Everything happened at once. Tarous attacked, Nidoking made a final push, using Thunderbolt and then a huge dust cloud covered the entire battlefield. It had happened so fast, no one had properly processed it. All they could do was wait to see the result.

The dust cloud settled, revealing Tarous, though battered, victorious.

"Nidoking is unable to battle, Tarous is the winner!"

"Nidoking, return." Keith recalled his Pokémon. He did not look worried at all. His original appearance remained the same, arrogant and confident.

"God job, Tarous!" Ash cheered his Pokémon, congratulating it on its victory. Tarous let out a battle cry.

* * *

Clemont watched, then stood up abruptly. "I knew it!"

Everything Clemont had analysed was correct.

Serena and Clemont looked at the blonde gym leader in confusion.

* * *

"Tarous, return." Ash said, recalling his Pokémon back.

"Pika pika!" Pikachu volunteered itself for combat. Watching allmthese battles had Pikachu in a fighting mood, but was declined by Ash.

"Sorry buddy. I promised Buizel a chance at the action. I'm saving you for a real pinch." Ash said, patting his partner on the head. He then reached for his water type's Pokèball. He then threw his Pokèball into the air just above his hand, catching it again. He then grinned. "Time to finish this."

* * *

"What do you mean, Clemont?" Bonnie asked her brother excitedly. She stood up on her seat so she would be eye level with the gym leader, running calculations in his head.

Serena looked worried at Ash. It seemed to be going so well for him. His dream was in reaching distance, and this was the last step on the way to getting to even try for it. If Clemont was correct about whatever it was he was looking at, that could all change.

"Nidoking had both type and move advantage over Tarous, but barely made any use of it. Why shouldn't he do that, unless he had a plan the whole time?"

"I thought he was just a bad trainer." Bonnie said. Clemont sighed at her simple minded thinking.  
"No. He had a plan this entire time. His final Pokémon is going to be the one he has the utmost faith in. The one he thinks he can take Ash down with!"

* * *

"Buizel, I choose you!" Ash threw out his Pokèball, and from it emerged his Buizel. Upon its arrival on the battlefield, Buizel immediately began throwing punches in preparation of its upcoming battle.

Keith grinned to himself, and reached for his final Pokèball. "I hope that sea weasel can fight, because the rest of your Pokémon ain't up to much!"

"What'd you say?! Last time I checked, it was three to one right now!" Ash exploded, angered by the sheer arrogance Keith had persistently shown throughout the match. Ash had hoped his current defeats would have humbled him, but no. He seemed to get more cocky as the match went on.

"Did you honestly think I didn't have a strategy for this match?" Keith mocked his opponent. "I let you defeat my previous Pokémon, to measure your Pokèmon's power! I didn't even expect your Pokémon to take as much of a beating as they did! Second rate Pokémon from a second rate trainer! It's one of the oldest tricks in the book, and you fell for it like an idiot! So now, prepare to fall, right here, right now! Hydreigon, wipe them out!" He threw his Pokèball into the air, releasing a three headed dragon into the skies, which let out a fierce roar. It was bigger than most other Pokémon of its species, and looks by far, more aggressive. It flew above Buizel, circling, as if it was mocking its next combatant.

"We'll show you what happens when you underestimate us!" Ash yelled, with a confident smile. "Buizel, water gun, go!"  
Buizel began to fire the water at a rapid rate, aimed straight for the Hydriegon. Hydriegon took the hit, suffering virtually no damage. Instead, it laughed at the pitiful attempt that the Sea Weasel Pokémon called an attack.

"Use Dragonbreath!" Keith ordered. Hydriegon stuck, firing a blast of pure dragon energy, directly hitting Buizel, knocking the water type off of its feet, sending it spiralling into the air.

"Buizel! Straighten out, and use Ice Punch!" Ash commanded. Buizel backflipped in the air, levelling out, and then began to focus its attack, freezing its paw, ready to strike.

"Hydriegon, Thunder Fang!" Keith ordered his dragon, and electricity suddenly began to form from its teeth.  
"Buizel, cancel, get out of there!" Ash yelled.

"Too late."

Hydriegon struck, sending electrical currents straight through the Sea Weasel Pokémon, causing it to cry out in pain. It's fangs sunk into Buizel, getting a strong grip on it, refusing to let it go. It was only after it had sufficiently savaged Buizel enough, and had caused a huge amount of damage, that it flung Buizel tot the ground, causing additional damage. Buizel had suffered an extreme amount of damage, but still stood up, though injured, ready to continue the fight.

* * *

"Ash!"

Serena watched as Ash's Pokémon were beaten down with absolute ease, afraid of the result. The tides of the battle had turned within seconds against Ash. Until this point, Serena had had the utmost faith in Ash's victory, and now feared his apparent defeat.

"I knew this was going to happen." Clemont said, biting his thumb in his own anxiety. "I knew this was going too well for Ash. He used his Arcainine and Nidoking to weaken Ash's Pokémon to make way for his strongest Pokémon."

"But Ash can still win, right?" Bonnie asked her brother. She was obviously in as much a worry as Serena and Clemont were.

Clemont folded his arms. "Ash still has one advantage. He has three Pokémon to his opponents one. But the disadvantage to that is they're all damaged. Thats the issue with Keith's strategy - no matter what, his opponent is always in a bad position no matter how he fares. Not to mention the psychology of his strategy. He can lure his opponents into a false sense of superiority, then he can beat them down with his most powerful Pokémon, shattering their confidence, causing them to make mistakes. Ash is gonna have to stand strong, stay confident, and look for a weakness."

Serena looked onto the battlefield. "Ash..."

* * *

Ash raised Buizels Pokèball. "Buizel, return!" He recalled his water type, hoping to save Buizel a knock out. He was stuck. This Hydreigon was defiantly tough. Though he hated to admit it, Ash had to acknowledge Keith did have every right to be as arrogant as he had been. This was going to be near impossible to defeat. Still, Ash remembered his own saying, to never give up, and reached for one of his other Pokéballs. "Okay Noivern, I need you here again!"

Noivern reappeared, ready to battle its fellow dragon. The two fairly growled at one another, staring the other down. The two were already pumped for action, and the sight of another dragon increased their vicious intentions. The only difference was that Hydreigon was clearly stronger, and Noivern had to whittle down its enemy with speed or powerful moves. That was the only way Noivern would be able to win this battle.

"Noivern, use Dragon Pulse!" Ash commanded.

"Hydreigon, use Dragon Breath!" Keith commanded.

Both Pokémon released their powerful dragon type moves, colliding into one another, causing a huge explosion, sending shockwaves throughout the arena, and a billow of dust covered the battlefield.

The dust settled. Hydreigon was the victor. Noivern was knocked out. Despite using the stronger move, Hydreigon's sheer power had prevailed.

The referee made his judgement. "Noivern is unable to battle, the victor is Hydreigon!"

Ash gritted his teeth, and pulled up Noiverns Pokèball. "Noivern return. You did a great job, thanks." He out his Pokèmon's Pokèball back onto his belt, then reached for another. "Tarous, I choose you!"

Tarous reappeared, ready to continue its battling. Despite suffering some serious damage in its last battle, Tarous still had plenty of energy to spare. "Use Take Down, go!"

"Use Dragonbreath!" Keith ordered.

Hydreigon fired a powerful green flame at Tarous, resulting in a large explosion. It would have knocked out any other Pokémon. But not Ash's Tarous. Charging right through, Tarous ran straight for Hyreigon, bashing into it at full force.

"What the -" Keith was stunned. For a second, his arrogance and overconfidence illusions had been shattered. It was then he realised he wasn't dealing with the average Kanto trainer, but something else entirely. "Nothing has ever gotten through my Hydreigon's Dragonbreath like that before, let alone proceed to then score a direct hit like that. Consider me impressed."

Ash grinned. "I'll admit, your Hydreigon's tough. But I've come way too far to loose here!"

Keith smiled. He seemed to have tossed aside his arrogant personality. Ash had gained his respect. "Sorry, kid, but I've got a lot riding on this battle too. Playtimes over. Hydreigon! Draco Meteor, let's go!"

Most Pokémon fire their Draco Meteors into the sky, and let the debris from the explosion hit their targets, like a meteor shower. Not this Hydreigon. It instead aimed the attack directly at Tarous. The debris, the intron impact, and the explosion would guarantee a hit on Tarous. It had no where to run.

Hyreigon fired. The initial impact was more than enough. A huge explosion, bugger than any one Dragonbreath had caused, sent Tarous flying back, flying straight past Ash, faster than a bullet, slamming into the side of the arena, knocking it straight out of the battle there and then.

Ash never even saw Tarous fly past him until it was half buried into the wall. "Tarous!"

"Tarous is unable to battle. The winner is Hydreigon!"

Ash recalled his Tarous. "You did a fantastic job, Tarous, thanks." He looked back at the Hydreigon. It was tough, there was no denying that. Ash only had Buizel, and Buizel had just been battered by it. Was this the final battle? Had it finished before it had even began?

"Kid, I'll give you this." Keith said. "You aren't the washout I thought you were. You've earned my respect. But this is over. My Hydreigon has never lost a battle using this strategy. All the same, you've given me a run for my money."  
Ash felt a surge of defiance, and by extension, motivation swell throughout him. "This battle isn't over yet!" He tossed his Buizel's Pokèball into the air. "I have faith in my Pokémon! You're Hydreigon's record is about to get broken! Buizel, I choose you!"

Buizel was still reeling from the injuries from its previous debut with Hydreigon, yet still was ready for a fight.

"Okay Buizel, this is it, it's all or nothing! Get ready to use our secret weapon!" Ash grinned at his Water type. Buizel grinned too. He had been waiting a very long time to use its newest combination in a real battle.

Keith looked over his Hyreigon. It had suffered a large amount of damage too. Ash was right. This was the final frontier. All or nothing. "You heard him, Hydreigon! This is the final move! Put everything into this one!"

"Buizel, use Sonicboom to get into the air!" Ash ordered, and Buizel obeyed. The Sea Weasel used its Sonicboom attack to gain some serious height into the air. Buizel then used continuous Sonicbooms in the air until it was towering, exceptionally high in the air. It was almost unseeable to the public watching it.

"Okay Buizel, use Aqua Jet!" Ash commanded. Buizel did a flip, and began to charge right towards Hydreigon, gaining speed, reaching its terminal velocity within seconds.

"Hydreigon, get ready to end this! Thunder Fang!" Keith shouted. Hydreigon prepared to strike again. If it hit Buizel, Ash would loose the battle. And he knew it.

Ash grinned. "Alright Buizel, all or nothing! Use Ice Punch!"

Buizel began charging up an Ice Punch within the Aqua Jet, and aimed it towards the tip. The effect created made the Aqua Jet freeze over, leaving Buizel as an Ice torpedo. An Ice Aqua Jet. Hydreigon, Keith, and everyone in the audience stared in awe at this combination that Ash and Buizel were so familiar with.

Hydreigon still attempted to strike Ash's Buizel as it came down. The strike completely failed. Buizel struck Hydreigon with incredible speed, and struck Hyreigon right into the ground. The Ice surrounding Buizel shattered, and Buizel landed atop the already falling Hydreigon, and use a final Ice Punch on it to ensure it's defeat.

The battlefield became silent. Buizel had defeated Hydriegon.

The referee cleared his throat, and held up the flag. "Hydreigon is unable to battle, Buizel is the Winner! And that means Ash from Pallet Town is the winner of this round and is eligible for entry into the next round of the Kalos League!"

* * *

"Ash won! He won!"

Bonnie and Serena were cheering for Ash and his victory, while Clemont smiled, appreciating the strategy Ash had taken. "That was smart. Not to mention imaginative."

"Care to explain?" Serena asked, interested to know how Ash had done it.

"Water, pure water doesn't conduct electricity. Ions in the water like dirt and metal inside the water conduct the electricity. So water attacks that come from water Pokemon don't usually conduct electricity, because they're pure. Pure Ice doesn't conduct either. Ash relied on that, and that made Hydreigon's Thunder Fang attack completely useless against Buizel. Not to mention, An Ice Aqua Jet would be super effective against a Dragon type like Hyreidgon. He turned a complete disadvantage into an overwhelming advantage! " Clemont explained both the science and strategy of Ash's plans, still in amazement himself.

"So that was really smart then, Clemont?" Bonnie Asked, to which Clemont nodded.

Serena watch Ash and Keith shake hands in mutual respect after their match. She then remembered something she had done after separating from Ash before he went to battle. In he hand, the held a single Pokeball. She had seen how much he had struggled in the first rounds of the league. There was no way it wouldn't get any tougher. "I guess he's gonna need you, after all."

* * *

Ash had been congratulated on his victory by all his friends. through a means of hugs from Bonnie and pats on the back from Clemont. Ash had congratulated and thanked all his Pokemon as well. Bonnie had climbed on top of Tarous, excited about finally seeing one up close. When Serena came up to him, and planted a kiss on his cheek. "Well done Ash. You were awesome out there!"

Ash grinned and blushed a little. "Thanks, Serena." He noticed her holding something behind her back. "What've you got there?"

Serena smiled, and presented him the Pokeball. "Here. I think you might want to look inside."

Ash took the Pokeball and raised an eyebrow, but did as instructed. He threw the Pokeball into the air, and once it opened, it revealed a face not seen in a long time. No one had even had time to react before it had already began hugging Ash.

"What the - Goodra?!"

Ash's Goodra had been inside the Pokeball Serena had hidden. She giggled and explained. "Kenzo called me up recently, and told me that Goodra wanted to return to your team for the Kalos League. So when we went to watch you battle, i made the transfer, and held onto Goodra for you until you came back."

Ash and Goodra separated after their reunion hug to which Dedena and Pikachu re-greeted the Dragon type back each other. Ash looked at Serena, and gave her the biggest and warmest smile had had used all day. "Thank you. You're the best, Serena."

* * *

*Begins breathing again*

THIS TOOK SO LONG TO WRITE YOU HAVE NO IDEA. I HAD TO USE A KEYBOARD. DO YOU KNOW HOW LONG IT'S BEEN SINCE I WROTE A CHAPTER ON ANYTHING BUT AN IPAD?!  
But this was one HELL of a long Chapter. This reached over 10,000 Words, and i'm not even kidding. I have more ideas to go through before this ends, but know we are in the final stages of the story. I hope you enjoyed this, and by the way - Thanks for 30,000 Reads. You guys Rock!  
Leave a review if you enjoyed this, and follows and faves are always awesome!See yu next Chapter guys! See ya!


	18. Chapter 18

Despite his first victory, Ash had had little time for celebration immediately afterwards. The first thing he had to do was rotate which Pokémon were in his party for the next round. He sent Noivern, Tarous and Buizel back to Professor Oak's lab, and got his next batch of Pokémon, ready, rested and prepared to battle the next day's battle, eager to get into a fight. It was another three on three battle. For it, he had decided on Goodra, Torterra and Pikachu, three of his heaviest hitters.

In order to keep an advantage, Clemont had suggested he not only rotate the Pokémon he used, but that he switched between various types of Pokèmon's battling styles, or anatomy. So, for example, using Quilava, Sceptile and Snorlax in the same team, because Quilava was small, Sceptile was quick, and Snorlax was a bulky and defensive Pokémon. Many trainers found it difficult to switch seamlessly between battling styles, something Ash never seemed to have any problems with. Ash had agreed with Clemont's reasoning and strategy, and decided he would try out this theory with the team he had selected.

His next opponent was a trainer who was apparently called Tsu. In his previous match, he had used an Ursuring, a Meinshao, and a Bouffalant. From his competitor profile, he wore a black hoodie and grey jeans. On the left sleeve of his jacket, in white, was the symbol for victory. He had a tanned skin color, and black eyes. Judging from his picture, he also suffered from Insomnia, as he had dark rings underneath his eyes

He had been congratulated by several people as he went about his business, who had watched his battle, impressed by Ash's battling abilities. He had been stopped as many as five times by people who wanted to congratulate him or ask him how he had done it. He was almost caught by a camera crew, who he could sense would interview him, something he, in his rather tired, mentally drained state, would prefer to avoid.

Ash was walking down the corridor to meet up with Serena, Clemont and Bonnie after he had received Sceptile when he heard the rumors.

"You heard about the trainer in the bottom brackets, right?" One competitor was speaking to another. The two seemed to be in the middle of a discussion. One had a look of worry on his face as the other spoke. The one who had spoken was dressed up completely in white, and had a red bag around his shoulders. Long hair, but half of the fringe was held back by his hair. The half that wasn't held up covered over his left eye. His visible eye was brown.

"No." Said the other trainer. He wore a black cap with a red jacket, contradicting his silver hair. His trousers, black, and his bag, also black. He appeared worried about this trainer in the lower brackets, obviously fearing facing an opponent too strong for him. He seemed to notice Ash. He diverted from his attention from his friend and called over Ash. "Hey, kid, you're the one who beat Keith Larige, aren't ya?"

Ash looked briefly to his side, realizing that the red jacketed trainer was referring to him. "Yeah, I did."

"Some impressive battling you did out there today. I thought for sure Keith had you beat." The trainer dressed in white said. "But I don't rate our chances of winning this entire league being too high. Your Improvisation was impressive, but it's no match for sheer power."

"What do you mean? Hey, I'm winning this league, and I'll take on anyone who tries to talk down to me!" Ash retorted, nearly exploding in anger that a random competitor had began to talk down to him.

His red jacketed friend out his hand between the two. "Sorry about him. He's terrible with words. Truth be told, he admires you a lot. You did an incredible feet beating Larige today... But, he was a lightweight compared to some of the competition here..."

Ash raised an eyebrow, interested in what this red jacketed trained was saying. "What do you mean?"

"You mean you haven't heard?" The white dressed trainer asked.

"No." Ash replied. "Heard what exactly?" The red jacketed trainer was also interested in what was being said.

The White dressed trainer looked around, as if he were about to reveal a grand secret. Once satisfied, he leaned in closer to Ash, and whispered. "Someone here, some competitor, entered the entire league using only one Pokémon. And I don't mean he hasn't used any other Pokémon in his match, I mean he only registered one Pokémon. What's more, he beat every recorded battle he's been in with just this one Pokémon!"

Ash felt a sudden dreading feeling of déjà vu. He remembered the last time he heard those words. Tobias in the Sinnoh league, and his Darkrai. Fueled by curiosity, however, he pressed further. "What Pokémon is it?.."

"A Charizard. Big one too. Male, and it has this weird... Thick metal necklace around its neck. It looks like a container for some sort of item. No one really got a good look at it. He defeated all of his opponents in no time flat without ever using it."

"All of their Pokémon with just a Charizard?" Ash thought of his own Charizard. He knew it was one of his strongest Pokémon, but even he wouldn't be able to sweep an entire team!

"Yeah. He took down a Tropius, a Scrafty, and, this one is unreal, a Carracosta with it."

Ash shuddered. This sounded like one powerful Charizard...

* * *

Ash's friends greeted him warmly upon his return. All of them congratulated him on his victory in the first rounds, expressing their confidence and undying faith in him, and their belief that he was going to win the league. Serena sat next to him, and hugged onto him arm, which he smiled at. Bonnie tried to guess which Pokémon Ash planned to use in the next round, only for Ash to reply that it was still a secret from everyone, and they would just have to wait and see until tomorrow. They had had a large feast, celebrating Ash's first round victory, and toasted to his victory in the next round.

Serena had made a special effort for the occasion. Instead of her usual attire, she had converted to a pink shirt, which, on her chest, had the characters for Pokémon on it. Lower down, she wore some shorts, made from the same materials as jeans. They were cut off fairly high up, above the knees, and about halfway up her thighs. Though Ash couldn't notice with his eyes, she had brushed and cleaned her hair, so it felt soft, like silk, to the touch. She also had the light scent of lilac, something Bonnie had commented on first, much to her embarrassment. She felt very pretty, and to Ash, she looked incredible. Enticing. Beautiful. Ash had never felt more of an urge to touch her, hold her, kiss her in his entire life. But he resisted, if only to spare her the embarrassment.

She however, smothered Ash in her affection. She held onto his arm tightly, and frequently kissed his cheek. Occasionally, she fed him something, which embarrassed him a fair amount, but he enjoyed the experience more than felt embarrassed by it. He occasionally bit back a little bit, occasionally feeding her something, or lightly flicking her forehead. Ash had noticed she seemed more playful today than normal. She reminded him of a Skitty. She was cute like one too. Not to mention, her attire made her kinda look like one too. Ash had thought to himself, 'All we need now is the tail.'

"You know, I heard a rumor about someone in the lower brackets of the tournament. " Ash brought up the conversation he had had earlier with the two trainers.

"Oh?" Clemont seemed interested in the rumor. He had been the gym leader in Lumious, and thus had often had the front row seats to the Kalos league. He had seen many interesting trainers there, and had occasionally seen the new rising stars. "What sort of rumor?"

Ash recounted the tale he had been told before arriving in the room. At the mention of the trainer, everyone in the room had gone silent, as they listened to Ash explain everything he had been told. Ash admitted he didn't he had never seen nor heard of the guy until this point, and mentioned two other trainers had told him that. Serena glanced at Ash.

"Hrmm..." Clemont thought to himself, before he spoke up. "I've heard that in the lower brackets, someone is going to have to fight two matches tomorrow. 136 people entered, and that number had been cut by half. So now, there's 68 competitors left. Half that again, and you have 34. Half that, and you get 17, which can't be halved. So someone got picked in a random draw to fight two matches tomorrow, to even it out a bit more. And this is where things get interesting. Even if one person gets taken out of the competition, they'll have to have another double match, because at some point, they'll end up with 9 competitors. I heard the exact same person got both double matches, and what's more, he also had a Charizard."

Ash bit his thumb, then smiled. "That so, huh? Looks like things are getting interesting." He grinned at the premise of seeing

"Be careful." Clemont warned. "I've seen people like this before. They're tough as nails. And if what you said is true, that he's only using his Charizard, he's going to be confident he can beat you, or anyone else with it."

Ash sighed. "Believe me, I know. I had a battle with someone similar before. Guy had a Darkrai." Ash recalled his Sinnoh league semi- finals match to them, describing how he was defeated by Tobias. In keeping with how he lost to people who weren't even using full teams, he told them about Cameron in Unova, who he had also lost to. The group listened, again with keen interest.

It was the first time Ash had spoken about his previous journeys in any real detail to his Kalosian group of friends. Even Serena. Not out of any particular embarrassment due to his losses, or any malice left behind in the regions. It had just not happened before. Serena listened the closest, imagining him in action at the various leagues and battles he was in. It felt almost surreal to her that he lost the previous leagues he had been in. She had seen him loose of course, she knew he wasn't impossible to defeat, but all the same, the way he had battled today, you'd have thought he'd have won if he fought like that. She knew it was difficult to win a Pokémon league. That was why the league champions were always so powerful. But this sounded like something else entirely. She felt a mixture of sadness, yet also pride in him.

Ash's stories came to an end. After a short while, Clemont decided it was time for Bonnie to go to rest. Bonnie of course, resisted, but she barely put up any resistance, as she was, in reality, finding it difficult to so much as stay on her feet due to a lack of sleep. Wishing the two a good night, Clemont lead Bonnie out of the room, who was muttering something about a Tarous at that point.

Ash looked at Serena. He hadn't been able to comment on her clothing since Clemont and Bonnie had been here, so as not to embarrass her. He grinned at when he realized her outfit reminded him of someone. "Alright, what's with the clothes? You been taking fashion advice from Shauna?"

Serena shook her head, with a kind smile. "Nope, I just wore what I thought you'd think looked cute."

"You did a good job then." Ash said, and snuggled up to Serena, who nuzzled up against him in return. Ash could have sworn he had heard her purring like a Purrloin at some point. The two sat where they were for a while, simply talking about anything that came to mind. Occasionally, Serena would move her body to get more comfortable, which always seemed to result in her getting closer and closer to Ash, and her snuggling into him. Ash didn't mind at all. There were few times that they had together where Serena would be so openly and happily affectionate. Despite her having a loving affectionate nature, there had been few times she had gotten to show it, seeing as they were either on the road, or surrounded by other people. Ash always appreciated the company of other people, but he would often wish to be alone with Serena, simply for those reasons.

They stayed there for a long time. About an hour until they decided they should get some sleep. Serena went to get changed in a separate room, as she normally did, while Ash changed in the actual room. For whatever reason, Serena took longer than usual getting changed into her night clothing. Ash couldn't think why, either. It wasn't like it was anything overzealous. Maybe it was her bow that she liked to wear to sleep? Perhaps she was having trouble with it? Ash smiled. He loved that bow she wore. It made her look adorable. He'd always comment on it whenever he saw her wearing it. A few times, he'd even asked her to wear it while they were out on the road, which she did, but then went straight back to wearing her hat the next day.

Ash laid on the bed and looked out the window, staring at the stars. Thinking about his next round in the league came naturally, like a magnetic attraction in his head. He went through his battle plans, and imagined the battle playing out in his mind. But he kept thinking about this mystery trainer with a Charizard. How strong was he, truly? Ash wondered if his strength had been exaggerated by people to try and psych out other competitors. If he was really this strong, however, Ash knew he'd end up having to fight him if he kept winning his own matches. Rumor has it that this trainer was in the D bracket, while Ash was in the A bracket. If they were to fight, it would be much later in the tournament. He remembered that this same trainer had to fight two separate battles tomorrow, to even up the brackets, so they would divide evenly. Twice, in fact, he would have to do that. Ash contemplated going to see the second match this trainer was in. It might be good to see the trainer for himself. See if he could get any confirmation on the rumors. Ash smiled to himself. If this guy was as tough as they said, it was sure to be an interesting battle.

Ash was just about to fall asleep. He felt his eyelids get heavy. He fought it. He wanted Serena to at least be with him while he and her fell asleep, so he was thankful when he finally heard some movement from outside the door.

"U-uh... Sorry I took... So long..."

Ash lazily turned his head to the door. What he saw was certainly a mix of conflicting thoughts I'm his head.

There Serena stood. Only her attire was different. Different in the way that she had next to attire whatsoever.

She awkwardly stood there, in the frame of the door, wearing only her underclothing, a bra and underwear, both red, similar to her red face. She found it difficult to so much as stand there in front of Ash. She still had the bow in her hair too, one small touch she had made with Ash's love of the bow specifically in mind. Her hands were behind her back, her fingers interwinding and fiddling with each other. She tried to force a smile, but it failed to show that she was embarrassed and terrified at the same time. Despite all this, however, unbeknownst to Ash, Serena still had her playful mindset.

Ash stared at her for a few seconds, barely even comprehending what he was seeing. His face then flushed a bright red. Serena had always been defensive when it came to her body. Once, when Ash had forgotten to knock before entering Serena's room in a Pokémon center, she had been hiding behind the door, and slammed it back the second she felt a push, as she had been embarrassed to let Ash see her like that. Now, she was here essentially presenting herself like this.

Ash stared at her, examining her, before finally asking, "Wh... What on Eart-!" He was cut off by Serena throwing herself on him, holding him tightly. Her arms found a way around his neck, and she laid on top of him.

She looked up at him, blushing furiously, yet forcing a smile, and asked, "How do you like my outfit?"

Ash didn't say anything, but that was because he was in shock. It was obvious he was beyond infatuated with her to the point of it being his only focus, on her image right now. Ash had never been more attracted to Serena in his entire life.

Serena was able to notice this. It made her feel more comfortable with him like this. Playfully, she added, "Well, if you win tomorrow, maybe I'll tease you a little more."

In that moment, Ash understood what this was all about. Quickly, his awkwardness and inability to speak faded away, as he began to let out a laugh. "This your way of motivating me?"

Serena smiled. "Is it working?"

"It certainly is working."

Serena blushed. Her plan had been to tease Ash like this. As a sort of reward for his victory today, and a prize for tomorrow's victory. In actuality, she was still very nervous and self conscious. "Do you... Uh... Like... It?"

Ash went red also, and smiled. This had been the first time he had seen anyone like this. Her actions and intentions clear to him now, he relaxed himself, and began to hold her in his hands. Her skin was hot, smooth and soft at the touch. Ash wrapped one arm around her waist, and the other hand through her hair. That was softer still. Ash realized just how much she had put into this. The scent of lilac was still there too. It certainly explained why she had taken so long to show up. Not to mention the amount of confidence that she would have needed, which she occasionally found herself lacking. "Yeah, Serena. I do."

He looked at Serena, and pulled her into a loving kiss, one he savored every second of. He felt Serena's body tense up for a bread second, then relaxing as she always did. Once they broke the kiss, Ash looked into her eyes. "I love you, Serena. I really, truly love you."

* * *

"Torterra, let's wrap this up! Leaf Storm, go!"

Ash Torterra released a salvo of leaves, sharp as razors, aimed directly for the opposing Meinshao. Meinshao dashed around the battlefield, trying to dodge the attacks, before being hit by a few stray leaves, leaving it wounded, giving Torterra the opportunity to strike it directly, dealing high damage to it, knocking it out of the match. After a high paced battle, Ash had come out the victor of the match. It had been a 1-3 match, with Ash having lost only one Pokémon.

"Alright, way to go Torterra!" Ash cheered, running up and hugging the head of the giant grass type. Torterra didn't show much other reaction other than a victorious battle cry. Pikachu cheered as well, sat atop of Torterra's head.

The audience cheered at Ash's victory. It had been an exciting match with an exciting finale. Serena cheered from her seat next to Clemont and Bonnie at Ash's success in the round.

Ash returned his Torterra to its Pokèball, and shook hands with his opponent, Tsu, who wished him good luck in future rounds, promising to battle him the next time they met in addition, a gesture Ash grinned at.

Ash went back through his entry point, intending to meet up with Serena, Clemont and Bonnie. He was smiling to himself. "We're on our way to wining the whole thing, aren't we, Pikachu? Just got to keep working at it."

Pikachu squealed in agreement.

At that moment, a tall person walked past Ash, headed towards the battlefield. He wore a blue scarf, and was dressed almost completely in black. He didn't show any emotion whatsoever as he walked past Ash, barely even acknowledging his presence. His only acknowledgement of his was moving slightly to the left so as not to walk straight into him.

Something about him made Ash pay attention to him. It was as if he radiated power. Strength. Pikachu seemed to notice this as well.

Ash watched him walk into the battlefield. "That's the guy, isn't it?" Ash said to himself. "The one with the Charizard..."

* * *

Ash found his group sat on the fifth row to the front. Serena had waved to him, and kissed him once he reached them. They had saved him a seat, next to Serena, of course. They had all agreed to watch this mystery trainer have his additional battle. He had won his primary match, of course. It was a surprise for no one.

Ash was anxious to see the match. He wanted to know if this trainer was as strong as they said. It was chilling, exciting, and nerve-racking all at the same time.

"And next up, we have our additional match of the day for you all!" The Announcer declared via the loudspeakers. Any noise in the stadium was drowned out by the speaker. "We have Joshua Hidan from Lumious City on one side!"

Joshua Hidan came out from his corner. Ash recognised him immediately. It was the trainer who had been completely in white from yesterday. Ash was supposed to see him. Joshua had never mentioned he was battling the mystery trainer he had been telling him and his red jacketed friend about.

"And on the other, we have Alain!"

Ash recognized this Alain person as well. He was the person he had walked past before, when headed up to his seat. He had a look of indifference. Ash had called it. This was the person with the Charizard.

"This will be a 3 on 3 match!" The Announcer said, but then, it was followed by some interference. This lasted a few seconds. Apparently, someone had come in. "Uh, sorry, I just got an update. Apparently, one side has declared they only have one Pokémon currently in their possession. Under league rules, we cannot force him to use an additional Pokémon should he choose not to. Therefore, this will be a 3 on 1 match."

There was some discussion in the crowd. Ash gritted his teeth. That confirmed it. This guy was the guy with the Charizard, and he really was serious about using only it. He noticed Joshua had also gritted his teeth. Any confidence he actually had was now diminished. It looked like he had already given up.

The referee stood up on the field, holding up a green flag. "Okay, both trainers, begin!"

Alain tossed out a Pokèball. "Charizard!"

His Charizard appeared. It was just as Joshua had described. It had a large metallic necklace object, inside, resided a glowing gem. It didn't look at all like your average

Charizard.

Joshua reached for a Pokèball himself, throwing it into the battlefield. "Go, Dragonite!"

A Dragonite came from the Pokèball, standing strong and tall. By looks alone,mot was terrifyingly strong.

"Dragonite, use Dragon Rush!" Joshua commanded. His Dragonite began to glow in a purple aura, powering up its attacks. In an instant, it began to rush towards Charizard, with strength, speed, and intent to knock out this enemy with a single strike.

Alain continued his look of indifference. "Dragon Claw."

Charizard waited until Dragonite was within striking distance, then struck.

Dragonite was stopped in its attack instantly, and fell back. In one hit, Charizard had rendered Dragonite unable to battle.

There was silence. The whole stadium watched in complete silence.

Ash was speechless. His jaw unhinged.

Joshua returned his Dragonite. He bit his lip and grabbed his second Pokèball. "Okay, next up, Samurott!"

Alain sighed. "I only came here to fight mega evolution Pokémon, and so far, we haven't seen a single one. It's a shame, isn't it, Charizard?" His Charizard nodded. "Ah well." Alain said. "Let's finish this quickly."

It didn't go well. The who audience watched, one by one, as Joshua's Pokémon were knocked out of the match, one by one. Each of them, regardless of type advantage or not, they were all one shot out of the match.

The referee made the final call of the day. "The winner of this match is Alain!"

Ash watched Alain walk off the battlefield. He was amazed. He made a fist with his hands. This was... Interesting. He liked a challenge, and this Alain person had just made things very interesting. He grinned to himself. This was going to be one hell of a fight. But one thing was certain. He was going to need some training.

"Tough guy, huh? Reminds me of Alder."

Ash heard a familiar voice behind him. He quickly turned. He saw not one, but two familiar faces. "Trip?! Paul?! What the heck are you two doing here?!"

Trip and Paul. This time not only on a screen, but in the flesh. They had arrived in the Kalos region. They had flown out quickly, and arrived recently. It was a shock to Ash that they'd even bother.

Trip looked out to the battlefield. "Got bored waiting for you in Kanto. Thought we'd come and find you in Kalos. Heck of a lot more exciting here by the looks of things."

Ash stared at the two of them. "That's not really it, is it?"

Paul reached behind him and held up a Pokèball. "You'll need training, won't you?"

Ash looked at the pair of them. Trip had his usual smile. Paul appeared indifferent. Ash smiled. "Training, huh?"

* * *

Well then, guys, here we are! That's the big plan I have for the Kalos league. But who will win the whole thing? I'm still thinking about that one : )

So, before I say anything else, I'd like to reply to a guest who was curious on something.

Guest, the reason Keith held back in the match was to give Ash a false sense of confidence. I thought I mentioned it using Clemont's explanations. If he went full force, Ash would be on guard.

So, I have maybe 5 more chapters of this story to make. Six if you guys want a final final conclusion. You'll see what I mean by that by the chapter the precedes it.

Anyway, what do you all think of this chapter, then? Let me know in reviews. I love reading them, and it makes me feel like I'm not wasting my time here. I read every single one, even though I may not reply to them all, I promise you, I read every single one.

Also,mid like to thank you all. We've gotten over 100 followers, and 100 reviews, nearly 90 favourites for One Day Off, with a total of 33,000 views. Seriously, you guys rock. I've been contacted by you guys asking for requests, reviews, reads of your own Amourshipping stories, and all sorts like that. I've been messaged by people who I looked up to when it came to Amourshipping, asking ME for advice. It's incredible, guys, I love all of you, much like Serena loves Ash, I love you all.

Let me say again, you can ask me for requests for Amourshipping stories if you like, or ask me for advice with your own stories, fan art, or literally anything you like. I hope you're enjoying this. I'm loving writing this for you all.

As always, see you next chapter. See ya!


	19. Chapter 19

"Ursaring, Hammer Arm!"

Paul's Ursaring let out a loud battle cry, and began to power up its hand. It charged straight for Ash's Torterra. Torterra stood strong, ready to take the blow. Ursaring then struck, striking Torterra hard. Torterra's head went back, and it's foot work left much to be desired. The strike had hit harder than Torterra had anticipated.

"You aren't standing strong enough! Get into stance and take the strike!" Paul yelled. "Never take an opponent lightly!"

Torterra seemed to respond, taking in the advice. He readjusted his stance, and prepared to take another strike. When Ursaring came in with another strike, Torterra stood strong, this time not seeming to react, taking it with strength.

"Okay, good. That's more like It." Paul said with indifference.

Ash nodded. "Okay, let's give Stone Edge a try, Torterra!"

Torterra nodded, and began to focus. Rocks from the surroundings began to orbit Torterra, and began to glow. Paul was reminded of his own Torterra now, watching Ash and his. In an instant, the rocks began to fire towards Usaring, who began to dodge them, moving out of the way by stepping to the sides.

"Change up!" Paul told Torterra. "You need to focus. Focus all of your energy into the rocks you fire, and you'll create a link between you and the rocks. One you do that, you can control their direction. Try it again, Ash."

Ash nodded. "Torterra, can you give it a try?"

Torterra nodded, and began to try. The rocks began to circle it once again. Torterra focused, closing its eyes, channeling its focus. It began to feel the links between it and the rocks around it. Again, it fired, and again, Ursaring dodged. Torterra focused on the rocks. They began to glow a tinted green, then changed direction, hitting Ursaring. The bear Pokémon. The attack was powerful. It nearly knocked Ursaring into a wall. It prevented being sent flying by gripping its claws into the ground.

Ash smiled. "I think that's enough for today, Paul." He raised Torterra's Pokèball, and recalled it. "Thanks a lot for your hard work, Torterra. You rule."

Paul nodded. "Alright." He returned his Ursaring to its Pokèball. He didn't thank it for its efforts. Same as usual.

Paul had come to help train Ash for the Kalosian league along with Trip. No one else had come along with them. They didn't want to see Ash until after he had "won" the league. Ash had trained with Paul for a while now, and he had noticed a few things about him. He seemed to be more relaxed than he was before, much less intense then he used to be. More respectful and tolerable. He no longer called his Pokémon that couldn't keep up with his training worthless. Rather, he used harsh words of encouragement. He would call them weak, edging them on. He had no harsh intent in the words he said, unlike back in Sinnoh. The words he used pushed his Pokémon to try harder, to make him eat his own words. Put simply, it was a training style Ash could tolerate.

"Looks like Torterra's gotten all the training it can get." Trip commented with a grin. He was leaned against a metallic wiring fence. Trips personality had remained relatively unchanged from when Ash last met him in the Unova league. "Now it's just gonna have to apply it in tomorrows battle."

"I did everything I could for it." Paul said. "Everything I did with mine, the rest will come down to how Ash trained it."

"That shouldn't be a problem then." Ash said, with a grin of his own.

Trip laughed. "I beat your Pikachu with a Snivy when I just began traveling! You expect me to believe you did a better job with a Torterra you only kept with you for one region?"

Ash's grin faded. "There was... Special circumstances regarding Pikachu." He sighed. "And anyway, didn't Pikachu beat down Serperiour?"

Pikachu jumped in, adding its own voice into the discussion. "Pika, Pikachu!"

Trip laughed. "Relax. I'm kidding." He walked over to Ash and Paul, with his usual reserved grin on his face, while his chin was tucked into his chest.

"I wouldn't kid if I were you." Paul commented. "I don't think it suits you."

Ash smiled. Paul had never been what Ash would have called a friendly rival. They could barely tolerate each other to begin with. In fact, they straight up could not tolerate each other. Now, after they had trained together like this, after Paul's change in personality, his kinder and less strict one, Ash felt more comfortable calling Paul a friend. Granted, he was still a strict trainer to the point where Ash would call it dictatorial, but it was much more relaxed than previously. He seemed to be much more social too. He and Trip got on well, due to them both having similar outlooks on training. The two of them often exchanged in friendly jabs at one another.

The three walked back to the Pokémon center. Trip mentioned something about having to go back to Kanto soon. They were only there for a few days. Not by their choice, but they had to return to Kanto shortly. Ash wasn't so sure, but he couldn't really stop them fro leaving if they wanted to. Perhaps they wanted to congratulate him with everyone else if he won, or avoid being associated with him if he lost. Ash had been training with them for a few days now. He had advanced a further three rounds in the Kalos league. It had been good to catch up with Trip and Paul. Their training had helped, there could be no question about that, though Ash wondered if it would be anywhere near enough. Alain had also advanced three rounds, each time defeating his opponents Pokémon with a single strike. And he had yet to see a reason for that necklace thing to even be on his Charizard, unless he just really liked to accessorize.

"Alright, thanks you guys." Ash said, as he split off from them. He went to his and Serena's room, already searching for the key. His match for the day had been completed. He had won in a 2 to 3 victory, two of his Pokémon, Gliscor and Talonflame, being knocked out. Sceptile had won the final battle for him. Ash thought again about his battle with his last opponent. That had taken him to the Semi finals. Alain was also in the Semi finals of his bracket. There was little to no doubt in Ash's mind. If Ash win his next battle tomorrow, he'd be fighting Alain in the finals. It was a prospect that excited and worried him. Was he going to be strong enough to beat Alain?

He reached his and Serena's room. He tried the door handle, only to find it locked. That was strange. Where was Serena? It was pretty late, so he had assumed she would be back at this time. She had been every other night. He shrugged. Considering he was out nearly all day all the time, he couldn't honestly expect her to be here every single night for him, just waiting. That would drive him crazy if it had been vice versa. He walked into the sink in the room, and filled a glass up with water. He downed the whole glass in one breath, then filled up a second glass. He had barely had a drink all day, and had desperately been looking forward getting re-hydrated. He let out a happy sigh after he finished his second glass. He glanced at the clock by the sink. 19:03. It had just passed 7 o'clock at night.

Ash sat down on the bed in the next room and looked at the pictures of his Pokémon he had. He had to now go into six on six matches. For his battle tomorrow, he'd be using Muk, Hawlucha, Bayleaf, Palpitoad, Pikachu, and Gliscor. His opponent was someone who had a good record up until this point, Lyle, who seemed to specialize in Pokémon that had a lot of initial power, and had amorphous bodies; bodies that didn't seem natural. He used Pokémon like Magnazone, Muk and Klinklang, for example.

Ash looked at the pictures of his own Pokémon again, considering switching out Bayleaf for Quilava or Charizard, or maybe even Talonflame. Maybe change Muk around too, maybe for Infernape or Greninja. Nearly all of his Pokémon had been in the league so far. He had even managed to call in Squirtle and Primeape to battle. Though he still had a few he hadn't used. Though he wanted to save them for the finals, should he get there.

Ash heard the door to the room open, and the rustling of plastic nearing. He got up from his bed, nearly disorganizing his picture plans, to investigate.

"Oh, hi... Ash. I thought you'd still be out training." It was Serena, holding five plastic bags, and two paper ones. Frankly, Ash was amazed that she had been able to carry that many at all. He quickly ran up, relieving her of carrying the paper bags and one plastic one, placing them down on the dining table.

"What the heck have you got here, Serena? Awful lot of things here to say we'll only be here a couple more days at the most." Ash asked, peering into the bags himself. It was mostly food supplies.

"I uh... Didn't think you'd be back by now..." Serena repeated to herself, sounding a little bit upset. Her arms came forward, and her hands joined, she placed them in front of her, her joined hands touching her lap. Her face fell and she stared at the wooden floor.

"Are you alright Serena?" Ash asked, worried that he might have upset her.

"I... Was just... I wanted to surprise you, that's it. I was going to -" Serena began to explain herself, but was cut off by Ash's lips intercepting her own. She couldn't tell if it was meant to be a kiss to cheer her up or welcome her back, or to subdue her, but not knowing any of that didn't stop her from enjoying such a wonderful and sudden show of affection.

Ash separated from her and smiled. "If you wanted to surprise me, it won't be much of one if you tell me now, will it?" He said. He hasn't wanted to upset her. If she wanted to surprise him, he would simply wait in another room or do something else. It was obvious she had been wanted to do something special, so Ash didn't want to upset her plans.

Serena, still reeling and light red from the kiss, smiled warmly. "Thank you. That's right, it wouldn't be a surprise if you knew, would it?" She said, already leading him into the bedroom where he had come from earlier. "Stay here, please Ash? I want this to be special for you."

Ash teased Serena. "Don't I get a special kiss from you then, to tide me over?"

Serena smiled and wrapped her arms around Ash's neck, leaning in herself, and kissing her hard working boyfriend. Their lips met, for longer this time. Their bodies met and warmed each other up. Once separated, Serena licked his lips then cheek. "There, that's what you're getting. That's more than usual, anyway."

Ash grinned as he watch Serena leave the room and shut the door behind her.

* * *

Ash spent a good long time planning out his team for the battle tomorrow. He rearranged the pictures of his Pokémon, trying to figure out which Pokémon would compliment each other the most. He leant towards type variety above anything else.

He wasn't able to think completely straight though. His mind was on Serena. He was curious to know what this surprise was, and it was messing with his head.

"Maybe I should use Sceptile instead of Gliscor..." He muttered to himself, his head already beginning to spin. Eventually, he decided to leave his team as it was, and just charge straight through full force tomorrow. He flung himself back on the bed, and stared at the ceiling, already feeling drowsy.

Pikachu was already sleeping, next to a pillow by the head of the bed. Pikachu had battled hard in its fight today. Ash wouldn't use Pikachu to battle tomorrow. He needed to replenish his strength fully. He smiled, thanking Pikachu in his mind for his hard work.

It had been nearly an hour since Serena had left him in this room. Ash opened his backpack, and routed through it, looking for something. Feeling through his belongings, he found a piece of paper, lodged in between some items in a yellow plastic box. He carefully pulled it out. It was his picture of him and Serena, the one they had when Korrina was traveling with them. Ash noticed that Serena had moved closer to him in the picture. Upon closer inspection, she had been glancing at him through the corner of her eyes.

He smiled. He thought back on his journey thus far, and scratched the back of his neck. 'Man, I really can be oblivious sometimes.' As he thought about all those hints Serena had dropped so often, that he had barely noticed. They had never registered until he looked back in retrospect.

He reached into his bag again, and pulled out several more photos, ones he had taken with Serena. One was with her on the route to is seventh gym battle. Serena had hugged him from behind in the picture. Another was after his capture of his Noibat. Serena was petting Noibat in the photo, while Ash held it for her. Numerous pictures like these were in his hands, and he flipped through them, finding himself smiling uncontrollably.

"I have got to be one of the luckiest guys on the planet. In fact, scratch that. _The_ luckiest." Ash said to himself as he went through more of his memories, nostalgia running through his mind. Serena had always been with him, through it all, throughout the Kalos region. He couldn't have asked for anyone better. She was just perfect in every way Ash could think mattered. To start with, she was very attractive. Beautiful, pretty, cute, all of those words applied to his angel. But more importantly than that, she was such a good, kind hearted, good natured, and determined girl. Personality of an angel, looks of an angel, heck, Ash would go as far as to say she was an angel. Now all she needed were some wings and a halo, and Ash would be in heaven.

He heard the door handle begin to rattle, and the door begin to open. He quickly put the pictures back into his bag.

"Sorry it took so long, Ash! My little surprise is ready for you!"

Serena stood in the doorway to the next room. She had changed into a more casual attire again. This time, it consisted of a yellow shirt, which again, had the characters for 'Pokémon' written on the chest. Underneath that, she seemed to be wearing a black vest, which seemed to outline the yellow shirt where ever it appeared. Replacing her Shauna inspired short jeans, she instead wore a pink skirt, cutting off just above her knees. She wore her bow accessory in her hair again. Ash detected the faint scent of a lavender perfume on her, as opposed to her lilac one.

Ash went a shade of pink when he saw her. No matter what she wore, she always managed to make Ash blush. "Wow Serena... You look great... But, what's it for?"

Serena giggled. "For your surprise, silly." She went over to Ash and got a hold of his hands, and pulled him along, into the next room.

Ash caught the scent of something else. Defiantly not perfume. Cooking. Once he was stopped by Serena, he saw what his ' Surprise' was. Serena had prepared a full meal for the two of them. Serena had never been one for cooking - baking, however, was another story - but Ash could clearly see all the work that Serena had out into this. There were various bits from different regions, nearly split down the center. One half seemed to be traditional Kalosian cuisine, and the other was, no doubt to Ash, common Kanto foods. Not only that, but his favorites as well. Ash could only theorize that Serena had taken his mothers offer of recipes up after all. To your average person, it was a kind, loving gesture. To Ash, however...

He hugged Serena, lifting her into the air, laughing and smiling. "Serena, I love you!"

* * *

Serena's baking had always been excellent. She was a talented baker. Her treats were something to be held in the highest regard. Ash would argue that her treats would but a treat shop out of business within a week. And he meant it. He was often the first to grab a handful of any given treat Serena made.

Her cooking was on that very same level. Foods she had obviously cooked before, traditionally Kalosian, were some of the tastiest things Ash had had the pleasure of consuming his whole life. In addition, somehow, dispute her most likely having never seen them before, she had made the Kanto foods taste incredible as well. Her cooking and baking skills were nearly an equal in level. Ash knew for certain he would rather have Serena's cooking as opposed to anything in any given restaurant you cared to name. His girlfriends food would surpass it every single time. It honestly amazed .ash she had never cooked for the group before. This was the first time Serena had cooked a meal for anyone. She had a real talent for it. But then again, he wasn't totally sure he wanted to share his girlfriends cooking with the rest of the world.

For once, Ash had made an effort to not shovel his food down his throat like it was seconds before expiring beyond all edibility. This was a meal he wanted to savor, to spend as much time on as he could. To that wish, he ate with such etiquette that Serena was almost worried that something was wrong with her cooking,before Ash explained his reasoning to her, to which she instead blushed.

To Ash, there was something different about this food, however. He had eaten what Serena had prepared many times before, especially the Kantoan foods. It felt more... Sustainable, was the only word Ash could think of, and even then, that wasn't a very good comparative. The food itself was delicious, it always had been to him. He had eaten it in restaurants many times. But whenever he took a bite of Serena's food, he felt his heart throb, only the slightest difference. But the food tasted better, dislike there being little to no difference. Ash smiled when he came to his own conclusion. Food from restaurants was good and everything, but those were mainly prepared by people who were there to get paid. Serena had made this meal using her own two loving hands, with little else than a goal to make a meal, some ingredients, and a person whom she loved who she wanted to make happy. Ash took another bite and smiled warmly at Serena, his dream cook, dream girlfriend, dream wife.

Serena blushed lightly as Ash smiled at her. "Um, what's wrong?" She asked, nervous. She had eaten her Kantoan foods first, saving her more familiar and preferred Kalosian foods for the finale. Ash had done the same, but vice versa, eating his Kalosian foods first.

"Nothing, Serena. It's perfect. It's just... Perfect." Ash said, smiling again at Serena. "The foods perfect, you're perfect, heck, I can't even think of anything that could improve tonight."

"I met be able to think of something." Serena said, winking at Ash. She took a bite out of her foods once again.

"Oh, don't tease me." Ash said, with a curious grin.

"Oh, you just eat up, Ash. I might have something special for you later."

Ash's grin remained as he finished off his meal. He hadn't ever tasted such good food his whole life. "Serena, you are one of the best cooks I've ever met in my life."

Serena blushed, stood up, and smiled. "Oh, thank you, Ash. I've, um, made something else if you're still hungry."

"What'd you make?" Ash asked, raising an eyebrow in curiosity.

Serena opened the microwave, which had remained off all night. She had evidently just been hiding whatever she had made in there. It was her custom treat box. Ash already could guess what was inside.

Serena knew that Ash would already know what was in the box, just by looking at it. She saw Ash's reaction, which was him nearly drooling. She smiled happily. "Do you want some tea with them?"

Ash nodded. "I'd like that."

Serena quickly boiled some water and acquired some tea. After two minutes, the water was ready, and she began to pour the steaming hot water into their cups. The water was a little less than what Serena expected. Some of it had evaporated when she had boiled it. One of them had only half a cup. She sighed, and thought to herself, 'Oh well.' That would be her cup. She put them on a tray, and placed them down on the table. She then handed Ash his cup, before opening the treat box. Macarons. Serena's trademark treat.

Ash chuckled to himself. "Should I toast or something?"

Serena giggled at his remark, and egged him on. "Go for it."

Ash was about to when he saw how little tea Serena had in her cup. Before saying anything, and without saying a word, he took her cup from her, and went over to the sink, so as not to spill any on the table or floor. He poured some of his own tea into Serena's cup. A small amount came out of the cup, scolding Ash's hand. Thankfully, the water had cooled down, so it didn't sting Ash too badly. He then passed his cup back to Serena, who had watched in silence. It wasn't really a big deal, of course, but to Ash, it just didn't feel right.

Ash then raised his cup, making his toast. "To a wonderful girlfriend, and the densest trainer this side of the planet. To us!"

Serena looked at her cup, now filled to and equal amount of liquid as Ash's, and, while smiling at his thought for her, and at his toast, also raised her cup, smiling. "To a performer in training, and the kind, caring, loving and loyal boyfriend who gave her the confidence to do anything. To us!"

The two ate a macaron eat, then took a drink of their tea each. Ash sighed, and said to Serena, "Don't give yourself less than me in anything, alright? We split everything like this evenly. We're a team, okay?"

Serena smiled. "Right. Okay. Thank you."

* * *

Their meal finished, the couple retired to their shared bed. Serena wore only her lingerie again. It had become a bit of a habit now, one Ash did not oppose in the slightest. The two laid together in their shared bed. Ash imagined if they would be like this, five years down the line. He certainly hoped so. He never wanted to leave Serena's side again.

Serena's body was pressed up tightly against Ash's. Her chest was pressed up tightly against one of Ash's arms, causing him to blush a scarlet shade. Serena's right arm was laid on Ash's chest, feeling every time his heart beat.

Serena snuggled up to Ash, and whispered into his ear. "I want to be closer to you."

Ash went red. Could they even get much closer at this point? Regardless, and not really thinking, he replied. "Me too."

To this, Serena adjusted herself quickly, so Ash had little time to react. She laid on top of him, looking down at him. Ash went red. "Uh... What're you doing?"

Serena smiled at him, blushing herself at what she was doing, and then licked her lips. "I've been with you for a long time, haven't I? I think it's time I taught you how we kiss in Kalos."

* * *

I swear these have gotten more lemon-ish as times gone on XD

I hope you enjoyed this chapter of One Day Off guys. Now, onto the requests.

You guys have certainly come up with some very odd suggestions, I'll give you that. A couple were sappy, and I got one asking for gender- bending. Sorry, but uh, no, not doing that one.

Also, I got asked to do a tragedy one. Now, obviously you didn't know I'm suffering from depression, and that's fine, but I'd prefer to stay in happy town, and I think writing a tragedy shipping might upset me, but if enough of you REALLY REALLY want me to write a tragedy one, I'll see what I can do. The rest, I can do at some point, no problem at all.

Requests are still open, by the way. Keep em coming!

So, I'll just update you on a couple of things too.

Recently I've been suffering from chest pains. A sharp throbbing pain in my heart. Been to a hospital, and it's nothing life threatening, in case you're wondering, it's just absolute agony. So, yeah. I've been marching on in the sheer sole name of Serena, so yeah, I'm writing these literally because I have a folder on my PC Full of Serena pics, which give me inspiration to write these things. Serena has basically become my anime crush at this point, and I admit that without shame.

I swear to God, if amour does not go cannon -_-*

On another note, do we all know PearlVault? The Westbro Baptist Church of Shipping? (At least, that's what I call them) Well, apparently, they have a thread dedicated to hating on me and my fanfictions. I'm not even joking, I've seen the thread. Only thing is, I'm blocked from it. I'll give them this, they're prepared.

I don't even have the words XD I must be doing SOMETHING right to piss them off XD

Finally, I've been having discussions with my friends at TASOffical about my popularity. I don't consider myself a popular writer at ALL. Everyone as TAS however, thinks I am. What do you guys think? You're my audience, after all. I do value your input. You all rock.

Also, while I'm here, I'd like to send a special thanks and shoutout to a fellow writer and buddy of mine, Derek, or as he's known as a writer here, MetekinGiant. I've been helping the guy out, and he's helped me out a lot too. He writes some Amour stories like Ash's Angel and Happy Accidents. Guys a pretty good writer, and he's been in a writing stick lately. His story's (Very specifically Happy Accidents) tend to be a little bit lemony, but he does have the decency to mark which chapters ARE lemony, and his actual writing is pretty damned good. I do suggest you at least check the guy out, regardless of the lemon contents, the stories ARE intriguing, which you don't see all too often with Amour fanfics.

So, as always, I hope you enjoyed, and I'll see you next chapter! See ya!


	20. Chapter 20

This was it.

Ash had been victorious in his semi final match. It had been very close. Barely managing a victory in a close, intense 5-6 match, which nearly ended in a loss for him. Ash claimed victory over his semi final opponent using the team of Quilava, Gliscor, Talonflame, Noivern, Goodra and Pikachu. But this was all ancient history. Barely anyone cared about that match right now. Not even Ash did. Not even his opponent cared as of this moment.

It was the finals. And Ash was fighting the challenger everyone was talking about. The one who had taken the Kalos league by storm. Who everyone feared to face, and he was Ash's final obstacle in the way of achieving one of his goals. He entered the battlefield, followed by a shroud of silence defending on the battlefield. His blue scarf flapped in the wind, like a flag, behind him.

It was Alain he had to fight. And Alain still only used one Pokémon. Charizard.

Ash came up to his podium, also in silence. He was excited, anxious, prepared, and Ill prepared all at the same time. He didn't know if he could win this battle. He could only do his best, and not give up. Pikachu was stood by his feet.  
The two competitors stared each other down. No words were spoken between the two. The tension was so thick, you could cut it with a knife in the air. Serena, Clemont and Bonnie watched from the stands. Paul and Trip were no where to be found, gone back to Kanto, according to a note Ash found in Trips room. They had no idea why, or for what purpose, but it was a bit too late to do anything about it now. Them, and everyone Ash had ever considered a friend or rival was watching this right here, right now. Here, in the stands, and at home, all huddled together in Professor Oaks Labs around a television set.

Serena could feel the tension almost suffocating her. The air felt heavy, like a thick coating of Carbon Dioxide smothering her. She sent up a prayer for Ash, begging for him to win. This battle meant everything to him. He could return home with pride. A Pokémon league champion. A master.

The battle wasn't being watched just here, either. All across the globe, people were watching. Rumours of these two excellent Pokémon trainers had spread, and everyone wanted to see this battle. Nothing had stopped either of these trainers. Now, the only thing stopping them, preventing their dreams and hopes from becoming a reality, was each other.

The silence was defending, broken only by the somewhat whispered voice of the Announcer. "Ladies and gentlemen, we at the Kalos league welcome you to the final battle of the Kalosian league. Representing Kanto, we have the master of unorthodox strategy, the unpredictable trainer, who dreams of becoming the worlds greatest Pokémon master. We have Ash Ketchum."

No sound was made. And Ash made no movements.

"Representing Kalos, we have the trainer of unparalleled power, who likes a challenge, and has so far, not even shown us his true strength. We have, Alain."

No sound was made again. And again, no movement.

The referee stood into the centre of the battlefield. To him, if felt like a war zone. He spoke clearly into a microphone. "This battle will follow the same rules as your semi final matches. A full 6 on 6 match. When all Pokémon on one side is unable to battle, or the trainer in question forfeits, the match will be over. In addition, both trainers will be allowed to exchange their Pokémon at any given time during the match. However, as per request of Alain, he shall be using just one Pokémon. Therefore, if trainer Ash Ketchum of Pallet town is able to defeat Alain's one Pokémon, he will be declared the winner, whereas Alain will have to defeat all six of trainer Ash's Pokémon. Are there any objections?"

Alain spoke first. His voice had nearly no emotion in it. "None."

Ash shook his head. "No problems here."

The referee stood off the battlefield. He raised a green flag into the air. The audience held it collective breath, waiting for the flag to drop, signalising the start of the match. Both trainers held a Pokèball in their right hands, ready to throw them into the air, and begin the battle for the title of Kalos Champion.

The flag dropped. "Battle, begin!"

* * *

"Are you nervous?" Serena asked Ash. She massaged his shoulders, trying to relax and loosen him up for his big battle today. She knew he was. His muscles in his shoulders were cramped up, and stiff. A result of stress and anxiety, one she had been familiar with herself for a long time.

He had been ecstatic when he won his semi final match, but that changed when he realised who he had to fight next. Ash has gone under a major personality change. He still acted the same way, but he now calm, cool and collected, focused completely on his training. His entire day after that had been training. He hadn't spent nearly as much time as he normally did with Serena, but she understood how much this meant to him. Occasionally, she would bring him something to eat or drink, and he would thank her, and then carry on, late into the night.

Ash nodded. He hadn't spoken much since he and Alain had been set to battle in the finals. He had been quiet. Serena didn't think it suited him. She was worried, but she understood why he was like this. This meant a lot to him. All his hopes and dreams could become a reality with the battle tomorrow, and he was facing arguably, what some people were referring to as 'The strongest trainer the Kalos League has ever seen". Serena would have been more worried if Ash wasn't nervous.

Serena cuddled him from behind, her hands covering his chest, near his heart. "Don't worry, Ash. You'll do great. I know you will."

Ash sighed. "It all lies on this. I've never reached the finals before... Not of an official league... And I get this guy as my opponent..." Ash's fists clenched, his fingers cracking from the pressure. "This has been years in the making..."

"You can only do your best, Ash." Serena said to him, gently. "If it makes you feel better, I don't care if you win or not. I'll still love you all the same. You know I will."

Ash smiled gently, and put his hand on Serena's. "I know. Thanks." He then bit his lip. "I owe it to myself to win. Not just for me, but for my Pokémon. Pikachu, and everyone. And you. You've been there. Everyone has been. And I don't know about you, but I think they're a bit sick of loosing when they get so close." He smiled weakly, laughing lightly in his head at his own statement. "I don't know if I can beat this guy... But I've gotta find a way."

Serena hugged Ash again, resting her head on his back. "You will. I know it."

* * *

"Charizard, go!" Alain called upon his fire flying lizard Pokémon, who landed on the ground with a thud. It's necklace was still present. It appeared to have been polished since its last appearance.

The angel had been different before. Ash now finally had a good look at it. Suddenly, it clicked. Getting a good look at it now, Ash realized what it was. "No way..."

Alain grabbed a hold of a small crystal ball on the end of a necklace, matching a gem inside the necklace of Charizard. They had a DNA pattern inside each of them. Ash watched in shock. "No way!"

"Go, Mega evolution!" Alain cried out. A dazzling glow of white light blinded everyone in the stadium temporarily, before revealing a black and blue beast. "Mega Charizard!"

The audience exploded in excitement! To think, all this time, Alain's Charizard had the power to Mega Evolve into a Pokémon the strength of this! Ash felt underclasses, yet he was not to be deterred.

"Okay, Greninja, I choose you!" Ash yelled out, throwing his ninja frog Pokèmon's Pokèball into the battlefield.

Emerging came the ninja frog itself. It entered with a backflip, and it's hands together, making a zodiac hand sign for the tiger, as if about to perform a ninjutsu. "Greninja!"

Alain held up his hand to Ash, before either of them could perform a move. "Before we get started, I want to make something clear." His voice had a feeling of smugness running through it. Confidence from experience.  
Ash raised an eyebrow in curiosity. "Uh, alright."

"I came to the Pokémon league to find Pokémon with the ability to mega evolve. And it looks like this was a huge failure. Not a single opponent's Pokémon was able to mega evolve. What a shame." Alain sighed at the reminded of all his previous opponents, who had been pitifully weak compared to his Charizards almighty power. "Different Pokémon are stronger than others. A Charizard like mine might be more powerful than another Charizard. The one with the most strength will always win. It's called natural selection."

Alain's Charizard made a grunt, blue fire emerging from its mouth, as if to demonstrate the very power Alain was speaking of.

"Without the ability to mega evolve your Pokémon, you don't stand a chance against me. Natural selection dictates the limitations a Pokèmon can reach without Mega Evolution. " Alain had had his eyes closed the entire time. They now shot open, squarely aimed directly at Ash. "Forfeit the match now, if you value your Pokèmon's health. This is a battle you cannot win. At least not without the ability to mega evolve. I've traveled all over this wide world of ours, and I made it my goal to defeat every mega evolved Pokémon there is with Charizard, and I've almost succeeded. I need only a few more to defeat. If you honestly believe you can beat me without the power to wield a mega stone, you're out of your mind."

Ash snapped back at Alain. "Power isn't the only way to win a battle! I'll show you right now!"

Alain sighed. "I warned you."

Ash's move came first. "Greninja, Water Shuriken!" Ash commanded. His Greninja began to charge at its enemy, producing Water Shurikens in its hands, firing multiple at Mega Charizard. Two came in from the right, two from the left, and one came from straight forward, a technique it had learned while in the Ninja Village, home to Sanpai, in a visit to his hidden home.

All five Shuriken made contact with Charizard, causing a huge steam explosion. Ash had hoped for it to do some major damage to his opponent. He was wrong.

Charizard was fine. There weren't even any marks on it. It simply grunted and roared.

"Dragon claw!" Alain commanded. Mega Charizard's hand glowed, and began to swiftly, faster than Greninja could register its movements, aimed to strike Greninja.

"Greninja! Use Smokescreen!" Ash ordered. Performing rapid hand signs, Greninja disappeared into a cloud of black dust. Charizard was forced to cancel its attack, unable to find its target In the smoke, giving Greninja a chance to counter attack. Greninja hadn't actually disappeared though. The smokescreen was a diversionary tactic. Greninja would hide in the smoke, and then use its incredible speed to escape the smoke before its opponents found it."Now, use Cut!"

Charizard registered where it's opponent was at the last second. Spinning down, and coming out of its ball to strike, Greninja fell from above, with its Cut attack slamming down on Charizard. Before it did any real damage, Charizard was able to deflect it using its Dragon Claw attack. Then, using its other hand, began to strike Greninja, hitting it directly in the upper torso, inflicting a great deal of damage, winding Greninja, robbing it of all its breath. Falling to one knee, Greninja tried to regain its breath.

"Can you still battle?!" Ash called out. Greninja shakily got to its feet, before nodding. "Okay then, use Double Team!"

Greninja began to make multiple copies of itself, each one a perfect doppelgänger of the original. The original was indistinguishable in all its clones. Ash grinned, happy that Charizard would be unable to make a clear attack. "Okay, now use Water Shuriken!"

All the clones used their Shuriken too, all exact copies of the originals movements.

All hit their mark. Ash heard his enemy's Charizard cry out. It had taken some damage!

But it didn't stop there. Charizard had tactically taken damage, to know which direction the real Water Shuriken had come from. Once it knew, it flew straight into Greninja, using Dragon Claw, striking Greninja square in the face, sending it flying into a wall. Greninja was out of the match.

"Greninja is unable to battle! The winner is Charizard!" The referee declared.

Ash gritted his teeth. This was a bad start.

* * *

Serena bit her lip and held her hands tightly together. "Oh Ash..."

* * *

Recalling his Greninja to its Pokèball, and getting another one, Ash grinned. "I'm just getting started! Infernape, I choose you!" Ash threw another Pokèball into the battlefield. Releasing a fire monkey Pokémon, Infernape took to the field, ready to battle its opponent. Despite being at a type disadvantage, as planned to rely on Infernape's speed and powerful ability to inflict some damage. Infernape understood this without needing to exchange words with its trainer, as was the bond it shared with its trainer. Infernape was there to just inflict some damage. There wasn't any way it would be able to defeat this opponent. Infernape accepted that. Judging by the power and speed that its opponent currently had, it knew that the best it could do was do some damage. Yet, it grinned. It hoped to maybe, just maybe, surprise Ash and itself.

"Infernape, use Mach Punch, back to back!" Ash yelled. Infernape charged at near impossible to see speeds, appearing in front of Charizard's face, stopping only for a few brief seconds for his opponent to realise what they were up against, before erupting into a flurry of high speed powerful punches, from all directions. Charizard was unable to keep up, despite its high level of speed.

"Open your wings wide open, and use Steel Wing!" Alain commanded. Charizard obeyed, and upon opening its wings, Infernape ran straight into one, causing It damage to itself. It's own speed had been used against it. Now dizzy, Alain's Charizard had the opportunity to attack.

"Now, use Dragon Claw!" Charizard wasted no time, slugging Infernape in the face, sending it flying back. Infernape however, was not done, and backflip landed on its feet, grinning.

"Infernape, now, launch the Flare Blitz!" Ash yelled. Infernape began to glow a blue flame, lighter than the blue flames Alain's Charizard did. A huge, brilliant flame engulfed Infernape as its ability, Blaze, activated in earnest. Suddenly, and without warning, Infernape struck Charizard. Charizard was sent backward by about 15 meters, suffering the damage from the attack, but a reduced amount, due to being the same type. Infernape also suffered recoil damage. Despite only just getting into the battle, Infernape looked beaten up badly, nearing the state of being unable to battle further. Infernape, however, determined to do some damage and be useful to its trainer, stood tall, ready for another attack.  
Infernape's ability, Blaze, was by far and away, the strongest Blaze Ash had ever known. After learning to control its power, Infernape was near unstoppable once it got going. The sheer power had impressed Alain. But it was not even close to being halfway to enough.

"Okay Infernape, use Flamethrower!" Ash commanded.

"Charizard, you use Flamethrower too!" Alain yelled.

The two fire types generated the fire from their bellies, and concentrated It to their mouths, then fired them at the other, in a fire on fire heated battle, scorching the landscape they met at. The sheer heat nearly toasted the referee, as these two proud fire types went up against one another, neither willing to back down. Infernape's Blaze ability had helped it stay strong so far, but now, it began to loose ground. A large explosion occurred, knocking Infernape backwards, and out of the battle.

"Infernape is unable to battle. Charizard is the winner!" The referee declared.

* * *

"This is not looking good." Clemont said, biting his thumb. "That Charizard was strong enough without a mega stone! I don't know if Ash can pull this back." He sighed, admitting defeat almost.

Bonnie, the optimist, even nodded in agreement with her brother. She couldn't see this ending well. She wanted to believe Ash could win. She truly did. But this Charizard was too strong.

Serena shook her head. "He's going to win. I know it."

* * *

Ash grinned as he threw his next Pokèball into the air. This Charizard Alain had was strong. But Ash wanted to fight fire with fire. "Alright then, let's try this. Charizard, I choose you!"

Ashs Pokèball revealed one of his strongest Pokémon. His Charizard roared in anticipation for battle, grinning upon seeing its opponent was another Charizard.

Alain seemed interested. "Oh? Do you in fact, wield the power to mega evolve that Charizard?"

Ash shook his head. "Charizard here had just had a lot of training at the Charazific valley. He's used to taking on other Charizard, mega evolved or not!"

Charizard fired a Flamethrower into the sky, showing off its power.

Alain closed his eyes and smiled. "I see. That explains why you're using it against my Charizard. It's just a shame for you that it's a futile attempt."

"We'll see, won't we?" Ash challenged Alain, before ordering his Charizard into battle. "Charizard, use Slash!"

Ash's Charizard roared loudly, before turning its claws into a sharp, serrated weapon, and attacked Alain's Charizard, already preparing to Dragon Claw in defence. The two met in a battle of claws, each of them roaring and striking at the other, looking for openings, before it became a straight up wrestling match, with the other trying to push the other down to the ground. Neither Charizard would back down. Both were too proud to back off.

"Charizard, use Dragon Tail!" Ash ordered his orange Charizard to attack. Ash's Charizard broke away from its match with Alain's Charizard, and slammed it in the side with a green scaled tail, inflicting heavy damage to Alain's Charizard.

"Grab a hold of its tail, and then use Flamethrower!" Alain commanded. Alain's Charizard gripped hold of Ash's Charizard's tail, digging its claws into its skin, before firing a scorching hot blue Flamethrower into the other Charizard's back, causing damage to it. Letting out a roar, Ash's Charizard slashed at Alain's Charizard's face, causing it pain, allowing Ash's Charizard to reclaim its tail. It roared again at its personal victory. Alain's Charizard saw it as a personal insult.

"Dragon Claw!" Alain commanded.

"Slash!" Ash commanded.

The two giant dragon - like Pokemon began to take turns striking one another with their respective moves, hit after hit striking them both for major damage. A Dragon .claw to the face, a Slash to the stomach, repeat, again and again, neither willing to accept defeat. Ash gritted his teeth. His Charizard had plenty of experience battling other Chairzard. That was why he had called on him, but it just wasn't enough. Charizard was inflicting damage, but it was clear Alain's Charizard would be able to take many more heavy hits. 'So this is the strength of a mega evolved Charizard...'  
"Charizard, pull back and use Dragon Tail again!" Ash commanded. His Charizard pulled back, dodging Alain's Charizards next attack. Its tail begun to glow, as it readied its strike.

Alain had had enough of this battle, and his Charizard was taking more damage than expected. He stood back, as if he expected an explosion to occur. "Okay Charizard, use Blast Burn!" Charizard began to instantly release heavy amounts of fire, burning the battlefield, inflicting a huge amount of damage onto Ash's Chairzard. Charizard stood for as long as it could, fighting to remain on its feet, determined to get back up. However, the damage was simply too much, and Charizard, heaving under the weight of its own body, collapsed.

"Ash's Charizard is unable to battle, Alain's Charizard is the winner!" The referee declared.

* * *

Serena's eyes watered.

* * *

"Okay, you're up next! Torterra, I choose you!" The Kantoan trainer threw his Pokèball into the sky, and from it came the giant landmass that was his Torterra, landing on the ground with an almighty thud, cracking the ground, and shouting out a large battle cry.

Ash grinned. "I know Torterra has the type disadvantage, but you have the move advantage for sure! Plus, Charizard needs time to recover after using Blast Burn. Torterra, use Stone Edge!"

His Torterra obeyed, and began to collect rocks from the surroundings. Sharp edged rocks, perfect against an opposing Charizard. Torterra began to shoot off the stones, like a machine gun, at Charizard. A highly effective hit, Charizard roared out in pain. Ash wasn't done yet however. Oh no.

"Quickly, Torterra, now use Stealth Rocks!" Ash commanded. This command caused a stir in the audience. Stealth Rocks worked by, once your opponent switched out into a new Pokemon, hitting the new switcher for damage before it began its battle, so Ash using Stealth Rocks made no sense. Not only did Alain's not have Pokémon to switch into, he already had that one Pokémon he had on the field.

Nevertheless, Torterra obeyed. Gathering large debris, Torterra placed the rocks on Alain's side of the field using its powers, creating rock pillars in the ground.

"Charizard, use Flamethrower!" Alain commanded. His mega Charizard took flight, high above the battlefield. It had the perfect shot on Torterra, the rocks it had just placed not in the way. Torterra was a sitting target. The blue flames engulfed Torterra, who stood there, trying its best to not be beaten. It still needed to finish its part in the fight. There was no way Torterra would be defeated here. Torterra refused to go down.

"Okay Torterra, Stone Edge again!" Ash yelled at his grass type. A machine gun of rocks began to fire at Alain's Charizard, but it swooped down, dodging them by flying towards the surface. Right where it needed to be.

"Do it!" Ash cried out.

Torterra focused. It remembered what Paul had taught it, how to change the direction of Stone Edge. Using that same power, the Stealth Rocks began to move. Each of them began to strike Alain's Charizard, inflicting a huge amount of damage to the mega evolved Pokémon, the most successful hit in the entire battle. The weight and mass of the rocks crushed Charizard, battering at its strength. The audience watched in amazement as Ash's Pokémon went on a rock based frenzy.

"Now use Leaf Storm!" Ash rolled on, making sure the punches kept coming. A hailstorm of sharpened leaves began to blow, aimed right for the fire typed mega evolved, and now severely damaged Charizard.

"Charizard, Flamethrower! " Alain ordered, and Charizard obeyed, despite hurting from the surprise Stealth Rock strike, it's flames were still powerful enough to toast Torterra, knocking it out of the match.

* * *

Serena's eyes were diluted at this point. Ash was loosing horribly. Nothing he did was working. She couldn't believe Ash could loose...she sent up a prayer again. 'Let him win... Please let him win...'

* * *

"Okay, I'm counting on ya. Goodra, I choose you!" Ash threw his fifth Pokèball into the battle, releasing his affectionate gooey dragon type Pokémon, perfect to take on this mega evolved monster in front of it.

"Here's hoping your final Pokémon can mega evolve." Alain said to himself, unimpressed. Still, he continued to fight the battle full force. "Use Dragon Claw!"

Goodra's command came seconds later. "Use Bide!"

Goodra began to flow a tinted white, storing up the power that was thrown at it. One by one, Dragon Claws battered Goodra's slimed body. To Goodra, they had nearly no damaging effect - it would take much more to hurt Goodra - but their power was unchanged, and was being stored in Goodra's Bide attack. Without warning, a brilliant white beam struck Alain's Charizard, sending it smashing into the wall behind Alain. Taking huge damage, Charizard cried out.  
"Charizard, can you go on?" Alain asked. It was the first time In the whole tournament Alain had been concerned his Charizard had taken on too much damage. This Ash, he knew what he was doing. He was tough. But his Charizard nodded. Charizard was tougher. "Alright, Flamethrower, go!"

Charizard used a blue flame to singe Goodra. Goodra defended its face using its arms, which took to brunt of the attack. This inflicted more damage to Goodra than Dragon Claw did, but it wasn't anything Goodra couldn't handle. The fire parted ways, blasting into the walls left and right from Goodra, creating holes in the walls around it.

"Dragon Pulse!" Ash ordered, and his Dragon type powered up its Dragon Pulse attack, firing it at its Dragon opponent.

Charizard dodged the attack, skimming the attack by barely a few millimetres. It was obvious now that the fatigue of battle was starting to wear down Alain's Pokémon. But it wasn't wearing it down fast enough. It clearly still had a lot of power and strength ready to dabble into. Power Ash simply didn't have the capabilities to counter like this.

Alain's Charizard charged at Goodra, locking hands with it, starting a wrestling match again. Goodra was able to push it back, but Charizard charged again, starting another one again immediately. Both of them demanded a victory of this. The good news for Ash was that Goodra seemed to be wearing Charizard down.

Goodra was keeping up with Charizard on the ground, but in the air, Charizard would have the advantage against all of his Pokémon.

"Use Ice Beam on its wings!" Ash ordered his Pokémon. This would work. Despite Charizard being a fire type, it had no fire by its wings, so it should still slow it down. Goodra fired, in an attempt to freeze over Charizard's left wing. However, Charizard tucked in its wing quickly, narrowly avoiding the strike. Using its right wing, it charged up a Steel Wing, and slapped Goodra with it multiple times, before shoving it away from it.

"Use Dragon Claw!" Alain commanded. Charizard pounced at Goodra, both claws sharpened for the strike, hitting Goodra repeatedly for heavy damage. Goodra yelled out as each strike hits stuck Goodra's body, dealing powerful, super effective hits. Goodra was at Charizard's mercy.

"Use Bide again!" Ash commanded.

"Not a chance. Charizard, Blast Burn!" Alain snapped his fingers. Charizard unleashed its ultimate fire move, scorching a gooey dragon type to the crisp. Goodra attempted to stand up after the attack, shakily and barely able to stand up, trying desperately to get another move in, as all Ash could do it watch as Goodra attempted to charge off another Ice Beam, before falling backwards, unable to continue.

* * *

Ash returned Goodra. He bit his lips. He had one Pokémon left, and Alain's Charizard was still able to battle. He had defeated all of Ash's Pokémon, his carefully hand picked team of Pokémon Ash had put together, believing them and their training would be more than a match for Alain's monstrously powerful Charizard. Ash wondered, could he defeat this unstoppable force with his one Pokémon?

He bowed his head, staring at the scorched battlefield on which his five Pokémon had fought and fallen. 'Can I actually beat this guy?...'

Ash glanced at his opponent once again. The Charizard was an unstoppable monster, a wall that had never been scaled in recorded history, and Alain was the proud wall maker who stood atop his work, seemingly laughing at any attempts to scale his creation.

The audience waited for Ash to make his next move. Murmurs began to spread throughout the whole stadium as Ash failed to select his next Pokémon. People began to wonder what was taking so long, and some even began to guess that Ash was a both to give up the battle.

"Ash Ketchum," The Referee said. "You must select your final Pokémon, or you will be disqualified."

Pikachu tugged at Ash's legs. "Pika pi! Pika, Pikachu!"

Ash gritted his teeth. "I..."

"DON'T GIVE UP!"

The entire audience went silent with that sentence, and all eyes fixated on the point of origin. The referee, Ash, the audience, even the commentator fell quiet at the sudden outburst that shattered the general quiet.

Serena was leaning over the edge of the railing, shouting as loud as she physically could. It hurt her throat, but she couldn't care less. "What happened to winning the league? What happened to winning it for your Pokémon? For me? For anyone?! What about your dream?! Are you really going to give up here? What happened to the boy who saved me in the forests?" As Serena shouted, tears ran down her eyes, stinging her eyes and diluting her pupils. "WHAT HAPPENED TO NEVER GIVING UP UNTIL ITS OVER?!"

Silence.

Complete and utter silence. Not even the sound of wind entered the stadium.

Serena was silently crying her heart out, as Bonnie and Clemont watched in a daze. People around her looked at her in a combination of amazement and confusion. Cameras focused in on her, showing the person who had yelled such an interruption.

The next sound was the sound of a chuckle.

Ash smiled.

"Hey, Alain. What was that you said before?" Ash asked, still staring at the ground. Alain didn't respond. He looked at Ash quietly. "Was it that natural selection would dictate if a Pokémon could mega evolve? And that in itself dictated how strong a Pokémon could be?"

Alain again, didn't respond. He simply nodded.

"I see." Ash said. He then shot his head up, glaring at Alain, with a grin in his face. Different that before. A real grin. A real smile. The first smile he had made in days. "Well then, I'd like to prove you wrong!"

Serena's frown became a smile, as she wiped the unspilt tears from her eyes. "Ash!..."

"Sorry about that." Ash said to no one in particular. It was generally intended to the entire audience. To Serena, and to Pikachu. "I'm better buddy. You ready?"

Pikachu grinned right back at Ash, and pumped a first in eagerness. "Pikachu!"

"Okay then!" Ash grinned, and turned his cap backward, so the sun shield was at the back of his head. He then raised his arm with a pointed finger into the sky, which then fell down on Alain's Charizard. "Pikachu, I choose you!"

* * *

Alain's Charizard was unable to move after Blast Burn, catching its breath and recharging its power. Unable to counter, Pikachu was free to make any attack it wanted.

"Pikachu, use Thunderbolt!" Ash yelled. Pikachu's checks began to crackle electricity, and the currents conducted along Pikachu's fur, before shooting off at Charizard, electrocuting the large black dragon.

"Quick Attack!" Ash followed up his attack. Pikachu sped towards the mega evolved Charizard, which had suffered a fair deal of damage, despite being resistant to electric type attacks. Pikachu dashed from place to place, trying to trick Charizard's eyes from keeping a track on it. Left, right, forward, back, back some more, now right, left, forward, changing position at speed and rate so high Alain's Pokémon had to work hard to keep track.

"Use Dragon Claw!" Alain ordered. Alain's Charizard slammed its serrated claws into the ground, which very nearly hit Pikachu, who used its spin dodge to narrowly avoid the strike. Pikachu skidded along the ground, underneath Alain's Charizard.

"Iron Tail!" Ash commanded next, and Pikachu obeyed. Its tail began to glow, solidifying itself to represent the form and strength of intron, and then slammed this form into the backs of Charizard's knees. The blow shook Alain's Charizard off balance. Pikachu scurried out quickly, behind Charizard's back, ready for the next assault.

"Thunderbolt again!" Ash commanded, and Pikachu obeyed again, sending a powerful electrical current straight at Charizard. The beast yelled out in shock at the swiftness of the electric Pokèmon's movements, and the shock of the strike.

"Flamethrower!" Charizard craned its neck to fire its strike at Pikachu with a later of fire. Pikachu was engulfed in the blue flames, and was sent flying backwards. Pikachu let out a squeal, before straightening out and landing on its feet. Pikachu had taken damage, but wasn't about to give up. This was a battle until the end.

"Pikachu, Electro Ball!"

Pikachu powered electricity in its tail into the shape of a ball, a sphere, and fired it towards Charizard, who deflected it with a Dragon Claw, following through with another Dragon Claw, aimed at Pikachu. The electric mouse jumped over the strike, narrowly avoiding being sent flying into the sky, jumping just over the Dragon Claw.

Pikachu then countered with another Thunderbolt attack. Chairzard moved to the side, dodging it, responding with a Flamethrower. One that Pikachu dodged at well, next going into a Quick Attack.

A pattern was beginning to form. Pikachu would attack, and Charizard would either take the hit, or dodge it. Charizard would then respond with an attack of its own, that Pikachu would dodge, or try dodging. Then Pikachu would counter attack, and the cycle would repeat itself over and over. Ash took my note of this.

'At this rate, Pikachu is gonna run outta steam...I gotta break the cycle... But how?...' Ash's mind raced rapidly. He was devising a way to defeat this monster Pokémon. He looked, scanning the whole battle, watching for anything he could use.

Wait. Was that it? What was that? It was!

Perfect!

Ash grinned.

"Pikachu, use Iron Tail, and get some height!" Ash said, grinning at his plan. Pikachu slammed its Iron Tail down into the ground, the momentum launching Pikachu high into the air.

"After it, Charizard!" Alain ordered.

His Charizard spreader its wings, and went to fly.

But it couldn't.

"What?" Alain was shocked. He began scanning his Charizard with his eyes. What was wrong?

Something caused Charizard pain, and its wings were unable to support its weight. Charizard let out a grunt of pain and tucked in it's wings again, unable to keep them open. A weakened Charizard fell to its knees, unable to keep up with the damage inflicted onto it at this point. It's knees weakened, its wings hurt. Charizard couldn't move.

Ash called out to Pikachu"Alright Pikachu, we need to put everything into this one! Get ready for our ultimate attack!"  
Pikachu grinned himself, and began to spin in a forward roll, gaining speed and falling at a rapid rate. Its tail began to glow the same iron metallic colour as its Iron Tail. Running down it, sparks of electricity conducted along it. At the tip, a sphere of electricity. A giant sphere of electricity.

Falling down at terminal velocity, Pikachu had gained speed and power from the fall. The electricity at the tip of its tail began to grow bigger, and glow brighter, like a miniature sun at the end of Pikachu's tail.

"Iron - Electro Tail!"

Alain ordered his next last ditch effort attack. "Blast Burn!"

The two attacks met with a ferocious explosion, causing a huge gust of wind to bellow from the stadium. The guys was so powerful, it even interfered with the speakers the announcer was using to commentate, and apparently, caused some television stations from across the globe who were broadcasting the battle to experience static on their broadcasting channels.

The gust of wind reached the audience in the top row, back seats of the stadium, powerful enough to blow the hats off of anyone who didn't have a tight enough grip on them. Serena had to tightly hold on to her hat to stop the brunt of the gust to send it flying away.

On the actual battlefield, both Ash and Alain had to keep their feet planted firmly in the ground, in order to prevent themselves from being blown away. Their arms were covering their eyes to protect them from any flying debris, only able to peek at the explosion through the he corner of their eyes.

The sheer power of the explosion sent a shock wave through everyone's body, as though they could feel it's sheer power running through their blood. Vibrations from the air collided with their bodies, sending the shock wave through them, like a speaker sends vibrations through a persons body.

The dust cloud from the explosion prevented anyone from seeing the result. As the wind and vibrations calmed down, everyone tried to pierce the result of such a tremendous battle thought the dust, but to no avail. Their only choice was to wait for the dust to become dispersed by the wind for the result.

The dust became less thick, and two figures were able to be pieced together.

Both Pokémon were weak. But still standing.

Both of them were panting for breath, winded from the attacks. Wounds and scratches covered both of their bodies, from head to feet. They were both wobbling, unable to keep their balance completely balanced. Pikachu had one eye closed, and a scratch running down the skin of its eyelid, a temporary injury, but one that would affect Pikachu for the remainder of this battle, should it drag out.

Alain's Charizard grunted.

Then both Pokémon fell over.

Charizard fell face down.

Pikachu prevented itself from falling face down by using its paw as a support.

Pikachu was still standing.

Once again, complete and utter silence fell upon the stadium. Not even the wind disrupted this silence. Ash stared in shock, as did Alain. Both of them thought the exact same thing. 'What the heck just happened?'

The referee stared himself for a few seconds. Had it happened?...

He raised his flag. "Charizard is unable to continue. The winner is Pikachu, and the victor of this match, and the Kalos league, go to Ash Ketchum of Pallet town in the Kanto region!"

The audiences erupted in cheers and clapping, absolutely destroying the silence altogether. Ash stood there in a daze, wondering if he had in fact, just heard correctly. He had won? Was that right? He won?.. "I... We did it?"

He walked over to his exhausted Pikachu, who was sat, happily smiling in the dirt. He picked up Pikachu and held him in his arms, looking at the cheering audience, and glancing at Alain's defeated Charizard.

The realization hit him like a hammer. Complete and absolute joy spread throughout his body. His confused frown became a a smile of ecstasy as it hit him. "We did it, Pikachu... We did it!"

Alain walked up to his Charizard, as it glowed, and reverted back to "What happened?..." He looked at his knocked out Pokémon. He looked at his damaged body, until he saw something that sparked his interest on his Pokèmon's wing. "Of course. Ice. That Goodra's Ice Beam must have frozen your wing enough to stop you from following that Pikachu of his..." Alain looked over to the victory of the Kalos league, who was now celebrating with his Pikachu. He said, loud enough for Ash to hear, "Not bad, kid. Not bad... You beat Chairzard without mega evolution. I'll give you this, you deserve this victory. Well done."

Ash smiled at his opponent. "Thank you very much. You brought me close to loosing."

Alain grinned. He then held up his Charizard's Pokèball. "Good job, Charizard. You did a good job. Return." A red glow recalled his Charizard back into its Pokèball. He then looked at a celebrating Kantoean once again. 'That kid can beat a mega evolved Pokémon without possessing the power himself... Heh. Kalos is lucky to have such a champion.'

Ash laughed and cheered at his own victory, hugging his partner Pokémon, who had been with him for years, aiming for this very goal alongside him. They had finally done it.

"Ash!"

Ash turned to his left, and was immediately tackled by a hug from a joyful teary eyed Serena, hugging him tightly, smiling happily and laughing. "I knew you'd do it!"

Ash smiled and hugged her back too. "Looks like you were right... I had some extra motivation too, didn't I? Thank you."

Serena blushed and closed her eyes while hugging him. Remembering the prayers she sent up, which seemed to come true, she smiled. 'Thank you...'

* * *

The ceremony ending the Kalos leagues was a fancy occasion, in which Ash was handed the trophy to the Kalos league, and inaugurated as the Kalos champion. He held his trophy high, as the entire audience cheered for their new champion. Ash smiled and remembered everything that had happened up until this point. He thought of Pikachu, of all his Pokémon. All of them, every single one, had fought in the Kalos league for him. He owed them everything.  
He thought of his friends and rivals. The ones who had lead him to become stronger.

And he though of Serena. The girl who motivated him in everything he did, who made him as strong as he was now. The person he loved.

As the celebration went on, he looked at her, as she watched him with eyes that emulated pride, he said one thing to her.

"Thank you."

* * *

And there we have it guys! Chapter 20 is done! Don't worry, I'm not finished quite yet, I still have a few chapters planned.

So, what do you guys think? This is the first bit of the story that could go either way in the anime, whereas the rest could technically happen.

I hope you enjoyed this guys. As always, I'll see you in the next chapter. See ya!


	21. Chapter 21

"We're nearly there! It's just down this route, and we'll be able to see Vaniville town!"

Serena happily jogged down the familiar path to her hometown of Vaniville, followed by a casually moving Ash, Clemont and Bonnie. The Kalosian champion gazed around the route, admitting the cherry blossom trees, smiling at the amazing work of nature.

After Ash's victory at the Kalos league, he had been bombarded by the paparazzi and, what Bonnie liked to call, his "newly appointed fan-girls", a phrase which irritated Serena to no end, as she had to watch them all try and hug her boyfriend. To his credit though, Ash had handled it as professionally as one could expect from a teenage reigning Kalosian champion.

Now, the group was headed to Serena's hometown, to meet her mother, Grace, once again, this time, on more familiar soil. Serena hadn't been in her own home in nearly a year, and she was looking forward to eating in her own kitchen, and sleeping in her own bed. With the added bonus of sharing it with Ash, but that would happen when it happened.

As the group walked along the path, it became more and more familiar to Serena, occasionally pointing out areas where she used to play with friends, or hide from her mother when she was supposed to be doing Rhyhorn practice. To Ash, Clemont and Bonnie, it as all just about as foreign as the rest of the entire route.

"How much further is it?" An exhausted Clemont asked an enthusiastic Serena.

"Not much further! Maybe about another five minutes if you keep that pace up!" Serena called back from about 20 metres forward.

Clemont sighed and used placed his hands on his knees, using them to support his upper body, so he could catch his breath. Ash came up behind him and patted him on the back. "Come on, we're nearly there."

Clemont nodded. "Right."

The Kantoan and Lumious City siblings walked behind an excited Serena. Clemont brought up conversation with Ash. "So, what's the plan now?" He asked.

Ash bit him thumb and considered for a moment. "Take it easy in Vaniville town for a short while. Can't stay for too long though, everyone's waiting for me back in Pallet town, back in Kanto. So, I'll be here for a couple of days at the most before heading home, I guess. You guys want to tag along?"

Clemont and Bonnie agreed happily, excited to visit Ash's hometown. Ash smiled, happy he wouldn't be separated from his Kalosian friends quite yet. The Lumious twins assumed Ash had asked Serena already. He hadn't. In fact, he wanted to surprise her, by getting her a ticket to Kanto with him. He hadn't gotten the ticket by now, but he figured he would have plenty of time to do that while in Vaniville town.

"Come on! It's here! You can see Vaniville town!" Serena called back, happily looking out over her hometown. She never thought she would be so happy to see Vaniville town again in her entire life.

Ash, Clemont and Bonnie finally caught up to a waiting Serena, overlooking the town. The first thing Ash noticed about the town was that it hardly seemed like a town at all. More like a village. There weren't all that too many houses, and there weren't many prominent landmarks or buildings of note for tourists, however, it was still a beautiful and peaceful area, which reminded Ash of Pallet Town. He could see a playground, with a couple of young kids playing on the slide and a tyre swing, along with a friendly Bidoof that must have lived nearby. The buildings were simple detached houses, each of which would contain one family inside of them.

Serena stretched out and took a deep breath of air into her lungs, and then sighed it all out, sampling the air. She then put her hands on her hips and looked over her village, happily stating, "It's great to be back home!"

Ash smiled at her. He knew the feeling of being back home after a long journey. There was nothing quite like it.

Serena then grabbed a hold of Ash's hand, and began leading him into the town. "Come on, I'll show you all to my house! My mom is waiting for us!"

* * *

Ash had little difficulty noticing which of the houses belonged to Serena. To begin, it was the only house in the entire town with a huge bulking racing Rhyhorn in the garden, just casually nibbling on some Pokémon food. Second of all, it was the only house that had its own private training field for someone to practice Rhyhorn racing. Ash had thought that if someone had wanted to meet the famous Rhyhorn racer Grace, they wouldn't have much difficulty in deducing where she lived nowadays.

Still, Serena happily presented her home to her friends. "Here we are!"

Ash smiled at the building. 'So this is where Serena lives...'

Serena lead her group in the lands surrounding the house, whereupon she was happily, and lightly Tackled by a friendly Rhyhorn. Serena knelt down and hugged the Pokémon. "Hello, Rhyhorn! I've been gone a while, huh?"

Serena ran them through a brief introduction with each other. She introduced the Rhyhorn as the racer that Grace had used during her racing years, as well as the one responsible for all the cuts and bruises she had endured during her racing practice days. Rhyhorn had always understood that Serena hated practice, as she had told the Pokémon multiple times, and it had tried to make it as bearable as possible for the young girl, but had to balance that out with following its masters orders as well. Regardless, Serena and Rhyhorn had a fairly good relationship with one another.

The Rhyhorn seemed to take a liking to Serena's new group of friends, particularly Bonnie, who had refereed to it as cute, and Ash, whom Serena had introduced as her boyfriend.

'Well, at least the family Rhyhorn seems to like me.' Ash thought sarcastically in his head. He petted the Rhyhorn, which it seemed to respond happily to. Ash remembered everything Serena had taught him about Rhyhorn, and used that sub consciously here, so as not to freak out the Rhyhorn at all. The result meant the Rhyhorn had taken a liking to him, so Ash had to concede, for a second time, that Serena knew what she was doing when it came to Rhyhorn. Not that he ever doubted her, of course. His experience with Rhyhorn previously usually had ended up with him being trampled half to death.

Eventually, Rhyhorn decided that Serena needed to see her mother, and as such, went to go and rest in its hut.

The group followed Serena, whom opened the door, and went briskly inside the building. Acting as if she had been gone for a day at the Poké-Trainers school. She dumped her bag by the door, and slipped off her shoes. She encouraged her companions to do the same, and she went down the corridor, calling out, "Mom, we're here!"

Grace appeared in the doorway to one of the rooms. Upon seeing her daughter, she smiled wildly and warmly, grateful to see her daughter home, happy and healthy, unharmed and safe. "Serena!"

Serena tackled her mother with a hug of her own. "We're back home."

Grace hugged her daughter back. How long had it been since she had see her daughter? A few months, perhaps nine at the most. Regardless, she was happy to see her daughter. "Welcome home."

Serena separated from the hug, and presented her group. "You remember everyone, right? Ash, Clemont and Bonnie."

The group reintroduced themselves, albeit for Ash, nerve racking. He had met Grace before, and she had come across as slightly eccentric then, and he wasn't 100% sure she completely approved of him. He had met her, of course, and she seemed fine with him, but that being said, that was when the two of them were friends, not dating. Granted, he had seen an email of approval that Serena's mother had sent her daughter a few months ago, that Serena had shown him. But still...

Outwardly though, Grace didn't seem too interested in that exact detail right now. As of this moment, she was more preoccupied with her reunion with her daughter.

Grace glanced at Ash, seemingly noticing his apprehension. She smiled welcomingly at him. "It's good to see you again, Ash."

Ash smiled in response, nodding his head slightly, albeit his movements stiff. "Yeah, it's good to see you as well." Ash had never been one to be worried about formalities, and scarcely felt overwhelmed by people, but he did now. He supposed it was because Grace could, if she wanted to, take measures to stop him and Serena from seeing each other, technically. She didn't seem that way, but that idea was always present.

* * *

After a long conversation with Grace and his friends in Serena's living room, Ash sat on the steps outside the house, leading to the front porch of the house, with his bag to his right. Inside his bag was the trophy he won in the Kalos league. He took it out and looked at it, smiling at what he had achieved. He took out a duster and cleaned the trophy. It had been a week since he had won the Kalos league. He had gotten a lot of congratulations from back home, imploring him to return to Kanto as soon as he could. Everyone was still there, waiting to see him again, back at Professor Oaks lab.

Ash stopped cleaning the trophy, and held it in front of him, inspecting it. He grinned at it. He still couldn't believe he had won. It was unbelievable. The idea that he was the Kalosian champion was incomprehensible to him. He had even heard a few people calling him a 'Pokémon Master'. It was a dream come true. That being said, he had no intentions to stop traveling, to give up on his ultimate ambitions quite would travel more, see more places, and capture more Pokémon, battle more trainers, and ultimately, challenge more leagues, and maybe beat them too. Ash noticed a smudge on his trophy. He began to clean it with the duster, rubbing the smudge over and over again. He grinned. His journey had only just begun, as far as he was concerned.

He smiled at his trophy again. He owed this all to his Pokémon, who had stayed with him, and fought alongside him for years. And Serena. Without her, Ash knew this would be impossible. Serena had given him the strength to carry on, when he himself had nearly given up. He owed her everything. He kind of felt that she deserved this trophy more than he did.

He put the trophy back Into his bag, and glanced at the surrounding area of Vaniville landscape, admiring the countryside. He wanted to see more places like this. See more of what this world had to offer. Ash looked closer to home, and saw Serena, feeding the family's Rhyhorn, not a couple of metres away from him. Rhyhorn seemed to smuggle to Serena in affection, which made her smile and laugh. On top of her head, the family Fletchling, which Ash had been introduced to as "That pesky bird that wakes me up in the morning", made itself comfortable. Ash smiled. He wanted Serena to be there with him while he went through more of this wide world. He didn't want to leave her side for a moment.

Which was a problem.

Ash wanted her to return to Kanto with him. She had expressed interest in coming back to Kanto with Ash. He hadn't asked yet, but she had hinted she'd like to go with him. But there was one issue standing between that.

Money. Ash didn't have enough of it.

Tickets between Kanto and Kalos cost a lot of money. Money Ash didn't exactly have to pay for a ticket for Serena. The Kalos league and a cash prize in addition, of course, but Ash hadn't received it yet. They couldn't give it out to him up front after the league, because he would have 100% been mugged for it the minute he left the stadium. And the prize was to be delivered by the leagues representatives personally to Pallet Town, so that was out of the question.

And he couldn't exactly ask anyone for money either. The last thing he needed at his age was to start racking up a debt.

And it wasn't as simple as asking Serena to pay for herself. He wanted to surprise her. A surprise doesn't exactly work by asking someone to pay for their surprise for them.

Ash sighed. He was sunk. He didn't know exactly what he could do.

* * *

Serena's room was certainly plain in comparison to what Ash was expecting. That being said, it looked very expensive. The room was fairly spacey, and in the centre of it, was a table. There was a small corridor near the window of the room that lead to a mirror, like an open walk - in closet. Her open wardrobes were full of clothes, and other fashionable accessories. On the window still, there were some pictures of Serena with people Ash didn't know. Presumably other childhood friends. Looking at one further, however, Ash realised it was one that they took when at Professor Oaks summer camp. There were, in fact, two of them. One was a photo of everyone at the camp that year, and the other was of the two of them together. Ash smiled. It certainly brought back memories.

Serena had switched into a casual attire that she wore when she was home, which was similar to her sleep wear. "You see the ones with us in them?" She asked, noticing Ash looking at her photographs.

Ash nodded. "Yeah, I see 'em. That was a while ago, huh?"

Serena rooted in her bag and nodded. "It was a long time ago." She found what she was looking for. The picture she and with Ash. In it, she had jumped onto his back without him being aware she was going to do so. She had hugged him and held up her fingers in a peace sign. Ash was laughing in both shock and surprise, looking up at her. She smiled. She kept rooting In her bag, pulling out more pictures, including the one they had taken when Korrina was traveling with them. She put most of them back, and kept a handful. She retrieved unused frames, and filled them with the pictures she had kept,mp lacing them on her window still. She smiled. "That's better, don't you think?"

Ash nodded, smiling, remembering when these photos had been taken. "I do."

Serena hugged Ash's arm. The way she hugged him, his arm brushed against her breast. "We should get some rest now. It's getting late."

Ash was still amazed that Grace had agreed to let them share a room. He had half expected to be sleeping on the floor downstairs. "Yeah." Was all he said.

Serena hugged him more enthusiastically. "Let me cuddle you~!"

* * *

Ash sat on the porch again, having borrowed Serena's tablet.

He scrolled down pages. He was looking for anything t hag paid. He was looking for work. To pay for Serena's ticket.

'Job vacancy in cafe. Waiter.' Ash almost laughed. The Kalos Champion working as a waiter in a cafe. Wouldn't that be a sight to behold? Ash imagined the Unova and Sinnoh Champions, Alder and Cynthia respectively, working as waiters. The image was hilariously absurd to Ash. It wasn't anything to do with pride, it just felt a bit funny to him that champions of leagues would just casually work in a cafe. So many incredible battles fought, then the trainers walking up to their customers table and asking their order. It was like seeing a movie star working in a coffee shop. The image was hilarious to Ash.

Then again, Ash wasn't exactly working with a lot. He wanted to get Serena a ticket to Kanto the very second he could. He wasn't really allowed the luxury of being picky.

At that moment, and envelope dropped onto the table, with such force the glasses on the table clinked. Ash looked up, to see Grace stood over him. She didn't say anything, but simply looked at the envelope.

"Uh..." Ash was both confused and concerned. "Are uh... Is something wrong?"

Grace nodded at the envelope. "Go ahead. Open it."

Ash hesitated, before reaching out for the envelope. Peeking inside it, his eyes widened. "What... Is this?"

"That's Serena's plane ticket. It takes off tomorrow. You, Clemont and Bonnie all have a ticket in there." Grace simply stated.

Ash held the tickets in his hands. All four of them, due to leave the Kalos region tomorrow. "What... What's... This for?"

Grace smiled at Ash. "You're uneasy around me. Understandable. I probably would be in your position. But Serena is my daughter, and my daughter loves you. She treats you better than she treats her family. I have never seen her so happy in my whole life, and Im her mother. It says a lot about you." Grace put her hand around Ash's neck, pulling him into a headlock. "She's happy, so I support and approve of you both. Welcome to the family, Ash! Consider those my welcoming gift!"

Despite being unable to breathe correctly, Ash smiled. He never had a reason to be worried in the first place, after all. He pictured Serena's reaction when he showed her the tickets. He couldn't wait to see that smile. "Thanks, Grace." He managed to say in between his gulps of oxygen.

* * *

Chapter 21 done for ya'll! I hope you're enjoying this story still!

So, I have to ask you. Now that One Day Off is close to ending, what kind of story would you like next? A short story, or another long one like One Day Off? Because I have ideas for both, but I'd like to hear what you guys would like.

At any rate, I hope you enjoyed, and as always, I'll see you in the next chapter! See ya!


	22. Chapter 22

Ash walked along the familiar paths back to his hometown. The surroundings were filled with aim cent memories, namely of the native Pokémon to the Kanto region. Poliwag, Diglett, Spearow and Pidey's actively scattered the landscape. A river flowed to his left, and in it were common Kantoan water types, like Magikarp and Tentacool. In a tree, a Fearow cried out, and took flight. Walking down the road was like a nostalgia for Ash, as he remembered the him from long ago, starting out on his Pokémon journey, just about five years ago. Pikachu was sat upon Ash's shoulder squealing in delight at its surroundings, remembering the journeys it had been on with its trainer.

For his Kalosian friends, it was a whole new world for them to explore. Bonnie ran alongside the river, peering Into the river and watching the Pokémon there swim. Clemont had to keep a close eye on Bonnie, in case she fell into the river, despite his consistent warnings to not stand by the river. Exasperated, he just kept a close eye on her, ready to scoop her up from the river and scold her if she slipped.

When Serena learnt she would be going to Kanto, along with her mothers consent to go with her boyfriend, she had been absolutely ecstatic. She had laughed and smiled and hugged Ash continuously. It had been worth it, Grace had said, to see Serena this happy, and Ash couldn't agree more. He was so happy she was here in his native region with him. He wondered how much of the surroundings she remembered.

Glancing behind him, he saw Serena looking off to the left and right, alternatively switching her view from left to right, looking all around the land Ash called his home. She wondered if she could remember any of it. From when she was here last. So far, she remembered nothing, at least not about the environment they were in now.

"How much longer?" Bonnie asked from the riverbank. She was trying to keep her balance by having both her arms out reached to the side, like a tightrope artist.

Ash studied the surrounding areas. He recognized the landscape. Judging from the area... "Maybe 10 minutes. 15 at most." Ash replied. In the distance, he could see some grey clouds, caused by the smoke from house fires in Pallet town. Everyone was waiting for him back in Pallet. Soon, he'd be there.

* * *

Ash and Pikachu smiled at the sight of Pallet town. They had been on this very hill many times. It had the best view of the town as you walked in, overlooking the entire surrounding area. You could see everything from where you stood on the hill. A flock of Pidgey flew over the town as Ash looked over it. The place hadn't changed a bit. He could see the Professors Pokémon lab. That was where everybody was.

Ash turned to his friends, waving at them to come closer, to share this view with him. "Come on, you can see it from here!"

His group behind him speed up their pacing, to join Ash atop the hill, and experience the sights this town had to offer. The reactions were generally the same. Expressions of enjoyment and wonder, and engrossment of the sight of Pallet town. For the Kalosians, the town was a sight of the Kantoan's world. Serena had been here before, but scarcely remembered the entire town, and certainly not the view right now. That would be something she would defiantly remember.

"Well guys, here we are. Pallet town." Ash said with a grin.

"So preeeeeety!" Bonnie squeaked.

Serena had to agree. It was a beautiful town. It wasn't large enough to look like human influence had ruined the area, and wasn't small enough to make it look remote. It looked like a peaceful town. A nice town. A great first impression of the Kanto region.

"Well, there it is," Ash said aloud. "Here's where I grew up."

Serena nodded. "And where I met you."

"How could I forget?" Ash smiled at Serena. This town would always have a special place in both their hearts for that very reason, regardless of all the other faults with it. This was where they met. Albeit a long time ago, this was where it all started.

They still had a while to go until they were actually in the town. Right now, they were still on route 1, but it was only a stones throw away, metaphorically speaking.

"We should get going." Clemont suggested. "We don't want to keep your friends and family waiting, do we Ash?"

Ash shook his head. "No way. They've been waiting here for a while. We better get there, quick."

"Where are we going?" Bonnie asked, looking for Ash's house, unaware of their actual destination.

"Professor Oaks place. I checked, and everyone's waiting there for us." Ash said. He knelt down by Bonnie, and pointed at the lab so she could see it. Bonnie's eyes sparkled once she saw it, thinking of all the Pokémon that must live there. "We should get moving." Ash said, standing up again, and carrying on the walk back to his home town.

* * *

Walking through the streets, Ash was a bit surprised by how empty they were. Pallet town wasn't a very busy town, but there was usually at least a few people walking around. It made Pallet feel deserted.

"Okay, here we are." Ash said, standing at the gate to Professor Oaks lab. He smiled. This was where all his Pokémon lived, and where he first started his journey, where he received Pikachu, and where he came back to drop off his Pokémon. Every time he came here, it was like a nostalgia trip. It was like a welcome home party. It felt like a home away from home, with all his Pokémon waiting for him.

Ash lead the group up the steps to the lab, a grin on his face, anxious to see his friends and Pokémon once again. The group followed close behind him, keeping the pace. Once at the top of the stairs, he was able to see the fields where the Pokémon tended to spend their days. Although, no one was there. At all.

Ash's group followed behind him. "Uh... Where is everyone?" Serena asked, looking around, glancing from place to place.

Clemont glanced at Ash. "You're certain this is the right place?"

Ash nodded. "I've been here enough times to remember where it is." He replied with a hint of annoyance in the doubt of his memory.

At that moment, the ground began to shake. Vibrations bounced back and forth between the layers of the earth, causing the ground to shake. A dust cloud from behind a hill became visible. A stampede. Ash's face went pale, and his eyes widened. He knew exactly what was about to happen.

Before he could even react, the dust cloud had already made its way to him, and had trampled him into the ground. It was his Tauros herd, welcoming back their trainer, albeit a painful welcoming for Ash. "Ow..." Ash said as he picked himself up. He was used to this by now, but being trampled by 30 Tauros tended to hurt. "Hello... Tauros..." Ash said, fighting to not fall unconscious right there and then.

His group behind him sweat dropped. "Are you alright Ash?!" Serena knelt by him, helping him to his feet. She couldn't decide if she was terrified or bemused more. Ash's eyes had been replaced with swirls, and he couldn't look straight, nor answer questions coherently. He was incredibly dizzy.

"Which one of these belongs to you then?" Clemont asked, inspecting the herd. All of them were indistinguishable from the other.

Ash managed to get the words out to that question. "All of 'em... They're all mine..." He said, before nearly falling over again, caught by his girlfriend, whom had put his arm around her neck, keeping him standing. "They tend to welcome me home like this... Owwwww..."

"Ash?"

Hearing a familiar voice, Ash managed to snap out of his near unconscious state. He managed to avert his eyes from his Tarous herd, looking behind him, seeing the source of the speech.

"Oh... Hi Dawn... Little help?" He asked, sheepishly. Serena tried to help him up, though Ash was a bit too heavy, and Ash was too weakened at this current moment to stand up on his own.

"Good grief Ash, you've been here for about 30 seconds, and you're already in this state?" Dawn sighed, smiled, and knelt down by Ash, placing his other arm around her neck, and, with Serena, helped Ash onto his feet. "Here I thought you'd all grown up. You haven't changed a bit, have you?"

Ash chuckled. "Well, this was a bit out of my hands..." He then turned to Serena, who seemed to be curious about the girl who had just stumbled across them. "Ah, right, you two haven't officially met in person. Serena, this is Dawn, Dawn, this is my girlfriend Serena." Ash said, making introductions. It occurred to him he'd have to do this a few times today, "Dawn traveled with me throughout Sinnoh. The one who gave me the ideas about your showcases." Ash remembered how this whole escapade started with what he learnt from Dawn, which he had used to help Serena.

The two girls acquainted themselves with one another. They quickly found common ground, with their love of fashion and performance. Ash took the opportunity to scout out the area. There was absolutely no one else around at all. The Tarous were the only Pokémon around for the entire laboratory. "Dawn, what's going on? Where is everyone?"

Dawn seemed surprised, and the rapidly became embarrassed. It wasn't going to work now. He might as well know. There was no hiding it. "Oh... Uh, that..."

* * *

Ash had been half been spared the embarrassing congratulations party he had been thrown. He had still acted surprised, out of consideration for how long everyone must have spent on the preparations. (Trip and Paul had left Kalos specifically to help prepare.) He just didn't have the heart to tell everyone he knew he was about to be thrown a surprise congratulations party, so he just acted surprised.

He had been reunited with his old friends. He had received many hugs from his female companions, and mostly handshakes and pats on the back from his male friends and rivals, along with multiple congratulations from everyone. He had been reunited with his Pokémon also, many of which showed their affection towards their trainer, which often resulted in him being left with more and more cuts and bruises, but he kept a smiling face on all the while.

"I knew you'd get there eventually, Ash." Brock had said to him, smiling me patting him on the back a bit harder than Ash would have liked. Brock hadn't been the only one. Misty, May, Iris, Cilan and everyone else had been and congratulated him. Delia, Ash's mother, had waited patiently before she spoke to her son. Ash had shown her the trophy he had won from the Kalos league, and she had gone into a small speech about how proud she was of him.

Eventually, the time came for his mother to meet his girlfriend face to face. Serena hadn't said or done much during the party. She had socialized, spoken to people when they approached her, but for the most part, stayed close to her Kalosian friends. However, when Delia had requested to see her, Ash had reluctantly called her over. Ash had been dreading this moment for a while now. If they didn't get on, that would be a problem regarding how they saw each other. If they did get on, Ash just knew his mother would embarrass him at every given opportunity. Either way, it wasn't Ash's ideal situation. Obviously, He preferred the latter, but wasn't a big a fan of that outcome either.

Thankfully for Ash, the two seemed to get on fine. Of course, it took the two of them mere seconds to start trading stories, specifically about Ash. Quite frankly, some of them were to embarrassing for Ash to so much as stand by and listen to them, so he left them to it, and took a step outside. The air was cool and refreshing, as opposed to the now warm and stuffy air inside the lab. Ash leaned against a wall, and took a deep breath of that cool air. He then let it out with a heavy sigh.

"Ah, Ash, there you are."

Ash tilted his head to see who had said his name. "Ah, hey, Cilan"

Cilan seemed much more laid back and relaxed then Ash remembered. To start, his clothing, his suit, which he usually kept spotless, was now undone and messy, in contrast to his near OCD levels of perfection. His eyes were half open, and his posture, which Ash could scarcely believe he was noting, was biased to one side, favoring his left leg. He leaned against the wall next to Ash, holding an energy drink in one hand. "Congratulations again. I saw the whole thing on TV. You did it in true Ash-Fashion" he spoke shakily.

"Thanks." Ash said, raising an eyebrow. "Uh, you okay? You seemed more energetic over the phone."

"That was a while ago, Ash." Cilan reminded him, then took a drink from his can. "My uh... Less than usual state is likely my lack of sleep. I've be awake for... Nearly 48 hours now."

"Oh. Doing what?"

"Helping set this up for you, of course. Everyone has. At best, some of us got off with 20 hours straight."

Ash gulped. He thanked God, Arceus, and many other deities that he hadn't revealed the surprise had been spoilt.

"Well... I could have gotten more sleep, but I wanted to do a couple of things..." Cilan carried on.

"Oh?"

"That's right. I've been looking up the Hoenn region."

Ash smiled. He remembered the Hoenn region. "You talked to May?"

Cilan nodded. "Yes I have. She was telling me all about the Hoenn region. Iris and I are thinking of going there together."

"With Iris, huh?"

Cilan sighed. "Yeah. Though she wants me to help her with her dragon training. Not that I mind, but I have to focus on my own work. Like you. I've had to do a bit of paper work and things like that for my gym back home. You had to focus so hard on your goal, didn't you? I mean, you got lucky with your goal being close to Iris's, so you could train together, but mine and her goals are completely different. I... Just don't have the time to. What about you? Did you have time to take days off?"

Ash smiled to himself. "I did actually. Just one though. Just one day off. And I'll tell you something. That has to be one of the best days of my life." Ash remembered that day he did nothing. The day he decided to relax. The day that everything started.

He looked into the sky and smiled. He remembered that day well.

Thinking about it, Cilan and Iris were headed off to new adventures. There still had to be more of this world to explore. Ash grinned. He wasn't done yet. He still had more to explore.

* * *

Okay, I'm sorry this is a short chapter, but there are several reasons for that.  
The first being that it was always planned to be short, as this is one of the more filler-y chapters.  
The second being I have been up for 48 hours straight, and barely eaten, and I cannot think straight. ;-;  
Just be happy I didn't write Iris getting hit by a truck. You may be thinking why I would even do that, and the answer is I HATE HER WITH EVERY FIBER OF MY BEING. GOOD GOD. THERE'S A REASON I DON'T GIVE HER SPEAKING ROLES.  
I apologize, but there will not be a one shot tomorrow, most likely. I'm too tired to write an entire one shot in less than a day BUT I WILL TRY DAMN IT. Requests are still open, however. So send 'em in! Lemme know what you thought of this chapter, and as always, see you next chapter. See ya!

UPDATE:: _I love how you tell our readers that you hate how religion forces it views on people. When all your doing is declaring your raist hate for Iris, BRICK._

No Guest, I don't hate Iris because she's black. I hate her because shes an annoying, irritating, aggravating, egotistical, hypocritical disrespectful little bitch who spends all her time whining and bitching at Ash for being a "child" despite doing next to freaking nothing throughout the entirety of her run as a whole, calls people kids while throwing a tantrum while trying to get him to give up on the shit he does while she herself fails at being a halfway decent Pokemon trainer ( MORE THAN HALF HER POKEMON HAVE DISDAIN FOR HER ANYWAY) and throws a hissy fit at her inferiority. NOT, Because she is black.

_John Terry:123pearlshipper is a rasist. He doesn't like Iris. What has she done to you. Southern wanker  
_I'm not sure if this is a joke review or not, but okay. I'm gonna debunk this for the ones of you who may think like this.  
First of all, I'm not southern, I live in the UK, and I'm considered by my nations standards as NORTHERN, so you can scratch that completely.  
Second of all, I _can_ not like someone who is black and not be a racist. Example : Someone throws a baseball through your window, first thing you think is "Fag" but you don't think _"Oh, He's a homosexual"_ you think, _"Oh he's an absolute prick with no consideration for private property" _  
And finally, what did she do to me? Well, I had to put up with her for nearly 200 episodes for one. Ruined the Unova season for seconds. (If she wasn't there, that would have been my favorite region, no doubt) Finally, her personality is the manifestation of what i hate about people. I feel like these are valid reasons to dislike her. Not because she's black. Good lord, no '-'

Just did this to make is clearer. Sorry for the rational of you who knew i wasn't a racist. 


	23. Chapter 23

Pallet town was a quiet town in the mornings. For the past few days, Serena had been staying in Pallet town, just absorbing the Kantoan atmosphere. She liked it in Kanto. She enjoyed it here. She found herself growing attached to Ash's home region. It was peaceful, relaxing, and not at all like Vaniville town. It was a pleasant change to her life in Kalos.

She contemplated this as she stared out the window in Ash's room, admiring the landscape around the place. She had been here for three days now, settling in, and watching as things began to settle down around the area. Ash had gotten a lot of recognition as Pallet towns own champion. It was praise he wasn't used to yet, so he tended to become nervous and embarrassed when congratulated by passerby a or self appointed fans. Serena couldn't have been more proud of him had she tried.

On the third day of her stay, however, the usual peace that Pallet town had grown accustomed to had a shake due to their champion.

The days had become similar. Ash, Serena, Clemont and Bonnie spent most of their time at Oaks lab. They helped out around the lab, doing bit and pieces of work for Professor Oak, feeding the Pokémon, for example. During this time, Serena had established a stable relationship with Ash's old rival Gary, and Professor Oak's assistant Tracey, who used to travel with Ash. They had gained this decent relationship by sharing various tales about Ash, then moving around to their own adventures, before establishing regular conversations.

Ash meanwhile, had expressed a bit of pent up frustration. He wasn't used to sitting in one place for so long and doing nothing. He wanted to go back out into the world and explore it some more, but it seemed like he had looked all over everywhere. Occasionally, to release his frustration, he would throw rocks into the nearby ponds. Serena had agreed with him. She liked Pallet town a lot, but she was itching to explore a new place.

While at Professor Oaks, Ash usually tended to the Pokémon, looking after them, tending to them and the likes. He liked it,mouth it further cd,ended his urge to explore more.

Overtime, his friends had left the town, going back to their own respective adventures. That being said,a few stuck around for a while longer, planning their next move. Talks erupted between individuals about traveling on their next adventure together. Misty, Brock, Dawn, Pail and Trip still remained in Pallet town.

"Electivire, use Thunder!"

"Infernape, Flamethrower!"

The two attacks collided, sending shockwaves throughout the air. The Fire and Electric types battled hard and fiercely, neither giving an inch to the other. The rivalry that fueled Ash's Infernape and Paul's Electivire lead the two on in their current match.

"Thunderpunch!"

"Mach Punch!"

A flurry of punches between the two, each connecting with the others punch. The two defended their bodies. Infernape saw an opening around Electivires gut. With speed and precision, Infernape struck through...

Tap.

"That's it! First touch goes to Infernape!"

Brock had declared the winner in their first - touch battle. Infernape had made the first clear hit. Ash grinned. "Nice going, Infernape!"

Infernape grinned at Electivire, proud of its victory against a long time rival. Electivire gritted its teeth in an irritated defeat.

Paul stood with his arms crossed,mane then revealed a shrunk down Pokèball in his right hand. He enlarged it let out a slightly irritated sigh. "Your defenses are open. We'll have to work on that. Alright, return Electivire."

Another match, this time in Ash's favour. He and Paul had been setting up several training matches to pass time and hone skills for a while now. Some went Ash's way, others went Paul's way. Infernape had battled extra hard, seeing as Paul was its previous trainer, it had wanted to prove that it was still strong.

Ash smiled. "Good work Infernape. Okay, that'll do. Return." Ash recalled his Pokémon to its Pokèball. He grinned. That had killed a few minutes.

As soon as Ash's Infernape had returned to its Pokèball, Ash began hearing a loud flapping sound, and squawks aplenty. Looking into the sky, he saw a huge flock of Pidgey and Pidgeotto flying overhead, headed towards the Viridian knew they tended to do this quite frequently at this time of year. It was usually when they migrated back home from the Orange Islands. That thought brought back a lot of memories for him in itself.

Some of his friends and girlfriend were alarmed by this large flock, until Ash calmed them down and reassured them that the flock was a natural thing. The numbers had shocked everyone around though. They seemed to have grown in numbers rapidly since their last fly through.

"There sure seem to be a lot of them this year." Tracey noted. "I wonder if something happened to the flock recently."

"Like what?" Trip inquired.

"Beats me." Tracey said. "Maybe they got attacked?"

"By what? " Clemont asked.

"It could be anything around here." Gary commented. He has studied the flock before, and was able to notice when something was off.

"Whatever. I'm sure they'll be fine. There's a huge number of them. You'd have to be an idiot to try and take them on. Besides, It's not like anything in particular has in in for them, right?" Paul brushed it off casually. He didn't seem too concerned about the large numbers, not about the flock whatsoever.

At that moment exactly, shooting up from the tree line, a wild Fearow shot up, and, at random, began attacking the Pidgy and Pidgeotto. It used powerful attacks to batter the innocent flock down. Pidgy and Pidgeotto were knocked into the tree line one by one, at a rapidly increasing rate.

The Fearow was huge, massive, and above all, clearly and obviously powerful. It let out a shrill screech, followed by a powerful strike against a nearby Pidgeotto. This Fearow seemed exceptionally protective of what it claimed to be its territory, and was willing to take on an entire flock of Pidgey and Pidgeotto that trespassed, knowingly or not.

"What the heck? Where did that Fearow come from?" Serena watched the Fearow go on a free for all in abject horror.

"That's it, I'm gonna stop that Fearow!" Ash declared, already dashing off towards the battlefield., before anyone else even knew what was going on. Ash was determined to stop the Fearow that was attacking those poor Pidgey and Pidgeotto for no good reason. He was soon followed by his friends.

* * *

Ash and his group arrived at the site where the battle had gone down. The Fearow, confident it had won, had left the scene and gone to rest. Dozens of injured Pidgey and Pidgeotto were scattered all across the ground, some injured worse than others. The ones that had fought back had been well and truly battered.

Brock, who had been training as a Pokémon doctor, began to look at the injured bird Pokémon. Thankfully, he was able to tell everyone that the Pokémon were not fatally injured. It was exceptionally lucky.

"What made that Fearow attack these Pidgey like that?" Dawn asked. She picked up a Pidgey that had injured its wing, and tried to comfort it.

"That Fearow probably thought they were here to take away its territory." Gary hypothesised. "That sure is a strong Fearow though. I've never seen a fighter like that one before."

"It took on an entire flock. A whole flock!" Clemont stood there, amazed at the sheer number of injured birds that Fearow had taken down. Bonnie stood next to Dawn, helping comfort the Pidgey.

Ash gritted his teeth, and clenched his fist. "Where'd that Fearow go?"

"What do you even plan to do?!" Paul asked, almost demanding the answer from Ash. "That Fearow is clearly aggressive and won't take kindly to you just walking up to it. It'll attack you! What exactly do you plan on doing? Just walking up and nicely asking if it will stop attacking huge swarms of bird Pokémon that come into its airspace?"

"I agree." Trip said, siding with Paul. "That Fearow is way too dangerous to just go find without a plan."

Ash glared at Paul. "I'm going to teach it a lesson, that's what I'm gonna do!"

At that moment, one of the Pidgeotto began a sort of call. It was a combination of cries and squawks, one after another. The call was loud, clear, and nearly ear piercing. Everyone covered their ears quickly, enduring the call any long would lead to a huge ear pain.

Once it was over, the Pidgeotto collapsed. Brock went to look it over. It was just dizzy from fatigue. "Still, I wonder what that call was." Brock said aloud.

"You don't think it was a call for reinforcements do you?" Dawn asked.

"Now that you mention it..." Clemont said, looking around. "There doesn't seem to be a leader of any kind. Usually, flocks of this size would explore the biggest to lead them, or even a final evolutionary stage. I don't see either. They all seem average size, and I don't see a Pidgeotto's evolved form here either."

"Does that mean that something scary is their leader?" Bonnie asked. She hid behind Serena for protection.

As if to prove Bonnie correct, a shadow that blocked out the sun moved over the group. Looking up, wings spread,made ending slowly, a large Pokémon began to approach them. At first, it looked like the Fearow, but it was something different. Landing on the ground,mother group saw what it was.

A Pidgeot.

"What is that?" Serena checked in her pokèdex, having never seen the Pokémon before.

The Pidgeot was large, and seemed to be friendly. It seemed to not assume that the group was responsible for the damage done to its flock. Rather, it almost seemed happy to see the group. Or rather, it seemed happy to see Ash in particular. It seemed to smile at Ash, like it was welcoming him back.

Ash couldn't shake the feeling he knew this Pidgeot from somewhere. A sense of vivid nostalgia, from years ago. Thinking back, he could remember something... Someone... No way...

"Pidgeot? I-It's you, right? You used to belong to me?" Ash asked the giant bird in front of him. His group seemed surprised, but Pidgeot responded with a happy cry.

"Ash?" Brock looked, smiling, seemingly in awe, the same awe as Ash. "Is that...?"

Ash ran into the Pidgeot hugging it in reunion. The bird Pokémon, loyal to its trainer that it had still not forgotten, even after all this time, wrapped its wings around this trainer in a sort of return hug. Ash was laughing and smiling, happy to finally see his old companion again.

Understandably, most of Ash's friends were confused. Ash took a few moments to explain his relationship with this Pidgeot. While he did so, Brock went around, tending to all of the Pidgey and Pidgeotto, helping the ones who were injured. He was happy to report that there were no serious damages. Pidgeot had shown nothing but the best confidence in Brock's abilities.

"I see." Trip said. "So, would that Fearow be the same one that attacked this flock before?"

Pidgeot nodded at Trip, giving him his answer. Ash was shocked. This was one persistent Fearow. It had been years, and it was still harassing the flock? He had to give credit where it was due, he admired that persistence. But it also angered him, that this Fearow still was spending all its time just to bully this innocent flock.

"That's it!" Ash declared. "We have to take this Fearow down, once and for all!"

"Still, that doesn't explain how we do it." Paul reminded Ash.

"Easy. We fight it!"

* * *

Ash noticed his Pidgeot's behavior had not changed much since he had last seen it. It was still a fiercely loyal Pokémon, and was dedicated to its flock, as well as it was to Ash, despite not having seen him in years, it still considered itself a member of his team. Ash had been well aware of his Pidgeot's dedication towards him while he was still on his roster. Someone had even gone as far as to say Pidgeot was more loyal to him than Pikachu was at the time. Ash just hadn't expected this loyalty to last so long.

Serena was simply amazed by everything that was going on right now. She was amazed that a Pokemon that had been apart from its trainer for so long would still be loyal to its trainer.

Paul and Trip were also there, along with Ash and Serena. Brock, Dawn, Clemont and Bonnie had all stayed behind to tend to the injured Pokémon. Ash had guessed Trip and Paul wanted to capture the Fearow, and Ash would be lying if he said he also wouldn't be interested in catching it. Not only would it clear the skies for the Pidgey flock, and make their trips less dangerous, that powerful Fearow would be an invaluable asset to his Pokémon roster.

Serena looked at Ash. "Ash, are you okay?" She had concern in her voice.

Ash nodded. "Of course I am. Why, what's wrong?"

"I'm just... I'm wondering what Pidgeot is thinking right now... And what you're thinking right now."

Ash looked at Pidgeot. Pikachu was currently riding on his head as he flew with the giant bird Pokémon. Ash smiled. "Pidgeot is probably thinking about how much it wants to take down that Fearow. Pidgeot is loyal. It's not gonna stop until it's flock is safe. And as for me... I want to help out Pidgeot."

Serena smiled. Just the response she expected from Ash. Still. She wondered.

"Up there!" Trip had located the Fearow. It Sat, roosting, resting, collecting its energy back once again. It had expended a lot of power it its fight with the flock, and needed to regain it.

Pidgeot let out a large shriek from nowhere, and began, without hesitation, flew directly at the Fearow without any concern for its own safety, it's shriek being revealed to be a battle cry. Fearow lifted off its branch before Pidgeot hit it. Pikachu jumped off of Pidgeot's back after, running back to Ash.

"I call the first chance at it!" Trip declared, pulling out a Pokèball. "Chandelure, let's go!" He tossed his Pokèball into the air, which released a Chandelure. His Pokémon had last been seen as a Lampent by Ash, but he wasn't surprised it had evolved. It looked like a powerful Pokémon. Once released, it let off some flames, as a way to let off steam, or smoke in the fire types case.

"Chandelure, use Flame Burst!"

Chandelure wasted no time, and began firing off shots of concentrated flames at the Fearow. Fearow dodged the strikes with relative ease. Upon dodging the incoming hits, the Fearow used an Air Slash attack to stoke Chandelure. The strike sent Chendelure flying into a tree, causing it major damage. However, Chandelure was still able to continue the fight, and got up again quickly.

"Use Energy Ball!" Trip ordered. Chendelure gathered energy quickly in front of its body, firing a concern treated ball of grass energy at Fearow. The strike hit, but due to being a grass type move, did little to Fearow. The angry Fearow then combatted with a super effective Assurance attack, which sent Chandelure flying again, this time knocking it out.

Paul then stepped up without a word. He then produced a Pokèball, and tossed it into the air. "Magmortar, standby for battle!" Out of the Pokèball came the powerful fire type, the second fire type to take on the Fearow.

The Fearow fired off another Air Slash attack at Magmortar. This one was more powerful than the one it had hit Trips Chandelure with before. However, Magmortar used Rock Tomb as a defensive barrier, which reminded Ash of his battle with Paul during his Sinnoh journey. The Air strike shattered the rocks, but Magmortor took nearly no damage.

Next, Magmortor countered with a Focus Blast. Fearow was able to dodge the blue ball of sheer energy. It collided with a tree knocking it down, but that did little for Magmortar in terms of winning the battle.

The Fearow them began spinning by the ground, rapidly spinning at a high speed, shooting towards Magmortar faster than a bullet, then striking it with the intensity and kick of one. The Fearow had used Drill Run. A super effective ground type attack. Magmortar was sent flying away, unable to continue.

Now it was Ash's turn. "Goodra, I choose you!"

Goodra appeared, and ready to fight its opponent. It let out a battle cry, but was stopped by Pidgeot.

Ash was confused for a second, before he realised. "You want to battle in Goodras place?" Pidgeot nodded, and Ash, glancing at Goodra, who nodded In agreement, grinned, and reached for his Pokèdex, checking the moves Pidgeot knew. He had to say he was impressed. Aerial Ace, Heat Wave, Quick Attack and Sky Attack. He grinned at the memories he was having, battling using Pidgeot again. "Okay then! Pidgeot, use Quick Attack!"

Pidgeot hesitated for not even a second, dashing into Fearow, who was not expecting the strike to be so quick and powerful. Fearow then realised that the real battle was about to begin.

"Use Sky Attack!" Ash ordered. Pidgeot began to glow a white color, preparing to strike. In record time for Pidgeot, the build up was done in a few seconds, and it flew right at the Fearow, which dodged, and countered with a Wing Attack. The attack damaged Pidgeot, but it kept going.

The two began to go in for a flurry of attacks, back to back, powerful and repetitive strikes again the other. Ash ordered a Heat Wave attack at close range. Pidgeot used its wings to generate heat in the air, which scolded Fearow, but it kept going, out of sheer pride and determination. It would not give up. It countered Heat Wave with Aerial Ace, hitting Pidgeot directly in the body. The strike sent Pidgeot flying down to the ground.

Pidgeot got back up and launched a Quick Attack at the Fearow again. This time, the Fearow countered using Aerial Ace, causing a clash between the two. The two fought for supremacy over the other. This was a battle of pride and honor, in addiction to personal reasons. The two separated, and clashed again, and the cycle repeated itself a few times. Using the surroundings to their advantage, they tried to trick the other into flying into one of the trees or getting stuck in bushes. They had obviously been in battles like this before. They knew each other well. They knew how the other battled, and battled accordingly to that battling style.

"Come on, Pidgeot!" Serena cheered from the sidelines, just like she had for Ash during his league battle.

"Teach that Fearow a lesson!" Trip uncharacteristically cheering on as well. Apparently the battle was getting to him, and he was enjoying this fight more than he tended to. While cheering, he snapped a photo with his camera.

Paul remained silent, intensely watching the battle. He was silently edging Pidgeot on.

"Come on Pidgeot! You need to keep going! Remember your flock and your friends!" Ash yelled at Pidgeot. "Remember why you're battling here!"

A new spark of determination flicked inside Pidgeot. Any fatigue it had was now gone.

"Use another Heat Wave!" Ash ordered. Pidgeot was right in front of Fearow when this order came down. The blistering heat that came from Pidgeot was unbearable, and burned, the Fearow. It went crashing down, hitting the ground with an almighty thud. Pidgeot then launched another harsh Aerial Ace attack That caused a squawk of pain , as well as creating a dust cloud that murked up everything.

Fearow was struggling to stand up. Now was the time. Ash threw a Pokèball into the air, and then catching it with the hand that threw it up. He then pulled it back behind him, before throwing it at the bird Pokémon. "Go, Pokèball!"

The Pokèball collided with Fearow, enveloping it in a red light, before the light took Fearow into the Pokèball, which hit the floor with a clank.

A silence descended on the area.

Every shake the Pokèball made, everyone, who was holding their breath, felt their chests tighten as their lungs expanded. Was it over?

The shakes increased. Was it over?

The shakes stopped.

Was this it?

Has they won?

Or was there more to come?

Click.

It was over.

They had won.

Ash grinned. And picked up the Pokèball. Pidgeot, Pikachu, and Goodra all smiled. Marveling at the Pokèball that contained his newest Pokémon, he held it in the air, declaring, "I caught, a Fearow!"

* * *

The forest was safe again. Now Ash had captured Fearow, the Pidgey flock could travel in peace. They all expressed their thanks for helping them in their time of need. Ash and his friends waved as one by one, they flew into the forest to live in peace, not having to fear being randomly attacked by an enemy they could not defeat.

Serena was so proud of Ash. He had not needed to help the Pidgey flock, yet he had done so, out of the kindness he had in his heart. She remembered why she loved him so much. Not that she had forgotten, but her pride in him was now replenished, as if she needed it to.

Brock had been bemused to hear that the very same Fearow was still causing trouble for the Pidgey flock, but was happy for Ash when he released he had caught it. He also agreed capturing it was the best option. Defeating it would not do. It had to be caught and trained by a trainer. Brock had said he couldn't think of a better trainer than Ash for the job.

The time came for the flock to depart.

All the Pidgey and Pidgeotto began to fly. But they had left Pidgeot.

Pidgeot stayed.

Ash was confused. "Why aren't you going with your friends, Pidgeot?"

Everyone smiled. "Ash," Brock said, "You remember telling Pidgeot you'd come back for it once the dangers had gone here? Well, they're gone. The flock doesn't need Pidgeot anymore. Pidgeot wants to be your Pokémon again."

Pidgeot nodded, confirming Brocks theory. Ash was touched, and smiled. All that time, Pidgeot had never stopped wanting to battle along side Ash. Pikachu was ecstatic about having one of his oldest friends rejoin them. Ash smiled and held up another empty Pokèball. "Well then Pidgeot." He said, tapping the Pokèball against Pidgeot. "Welcome back." The same red light that had caught Fearow did Pidgeot this time. There were less shakes this time, and a click was nearly instant.

Ash had caught Pidgeot. Once again.

* * *

The group reproached the lab looking Mike they had been dragged through a hedge. Professor Oak commented this much, before he was informed on the adventure that had just had.

"My, my." Oak said. "You really are anxious to have an adventure, aren't you? Though I'm not sure if it was that or if you thought it was the right thing to do. Most likely both. Like a good champion should." Ash had blushed at this remark. Still not used to this kind of praise. "Well Ash, it just so happens that I have a conference meeting with someone of high importance in the Eados Region in a few days time." He handed Ash a map of the Eados Region.

Ash examines the map, and sees that the regional league is considered one of the most intense and battle blood pumping events I. The Pokémon world. He also noted that there were showcases there too. Something for Serena.

A grin appeared on his face. "Hey Serena. How do you feel about going on another journey?"

* * *

There we have chapter 23 for you all! This one was mainly me focusing on how much I want Pidgeot to come back. I miss my bird loyal friend so much. I miss you Pidgeot! And also how Ash should have totally caught that Fearow, and how that has always irritated me. It also marks the only chapter in this story that isn't focused completely and utterly on Ash and Serena.  
Next chapter is something pretty different for you all! As always, I hope to see you next time, and as always, I will see you then. See ya!


	24. Chapter 24

A younger apprentice teacher knocked on the door to room A5X in the cabin. He was 16 years old. He wasn't even supposed to be staying at this school, but he had been offered a place at the school as soon as he had come back from his journey, and had accepted, and was now being taught by one of the teachers on how to be a teacher, ironically. He didn't mind his job, and enjoyed teaching the younger kids what he learnt on his journeys, and it paid well. He acted mainly as an assistant while he learnt the ropes. Right now they were at one of the summer camps, teaching the kids how to interact with Pokémon.

He didn't get a response from inside, so he just walked in. He saw the guest his school camp had been gifted withs presence, asleep, his head on one of the desks. His partner Pokémon was sat next to him, also sleeping. It wasn't surprising at all. The guy had been working all day, and he hadn't gotten much sleep over the last few days, according to him at least. He would be a busy person after all. This wasn't your average joe. This guy nearly did nothing but work, according to the press. Not that they'd have been any help towards his sleeping schedule.

The apprentice approached nervously. The person sleeping in front of him was a celebrity, and the apprentice had been a fan of his for a long time now. He scared himself by thinking just how close he had come to turning the place here down. He would have missed this incredible visit. He could have lost the opportunity to meet his idol. He wanted to act like a kid, screaming and jumping up and down, but he had to act professional. He was a client of his idol. Nothing more. But still, he felt honoured to be able to speak with him. Though he regretted that he would have to wake him up. That was only going to be a one way ticket to irritating him.

"Um... Excuse me?" He got no response. He, reluctantly, lightly shook the sleeping mans shoulders. "Mr. Ketchum? Excuse me, sir?"

Ash opened one eye before remembering just where the heck he was. He shot up, looking around. The room was empty. Aside from the teacher who had woken him up. "Uh... Sorry." Ash said. He scratched the back of his head and laughed nervously. "I guess I must of knocked out there..."

Pikachu copied his trainers actions exactly, also apologising to the staff for not waking up Ash, with a thunderbolt if necessary. "Pika pika..."

The apprentice shook his head. "No, no, not a problem. I was uh, actually just here to tell you that your with us is at an end. Today's session is over, you're free to go now. I've got your money here."

He handed Ash a letter. Inside was a collection of bills. It hadn't been cheap getting the Ash Ketchum into the camp to talk to the kids about battling and league matches like so many of them wanted, but by the looks on the kids faces, it had been worth it.

Ash stood up, and brushed his clothing down. It was one of the few times he had been worn an outfit like this to something like this. Then again, it was the most 'professional' thing he had ever done outside of battling. It wasn't exactly his usual clothing. It was more of a replica of his clothing. It was sort of stiff, and hadn't been washed to softness yet, like you had to do with brand new fresh clothing. He took the letter, noticing that the apprentice was nervous. His hand was shaking when Ash accepted the letter full of money. "Ah, thanks. Sorry it costs so much..."

"Oh, it's uh... It's not a problem at all, sir!" The apprentice spoke so formally to Ash, it almost made him want to laugh. He reminded himself he was still in a professional environment. "We'd just like to thank you for finding the time to come and do what you did for the kids here. It really meant a lot to them."

"Sure thing." Ash said with a yawn and Pikachu hopped onto his shoulder. He didn't speak in a professional way at all. He just spoke casually as he always did. "Happy to do it. Let me know if you need something like this again, I'm more than happy to come back if you need anything."

"Oh, we will! You know, I uh... I've got to say, I've seen your battles on TV when I was traveling, and uh, I'm personally a big fan of yours." The apprentice said, he was nervous as he spoke.

Ash smiled at the nervous apprentice. "Gee, thanks. I'm uh, glad you like it."

The apprentice smiled and coyly presented Ash with a picture. Ash recognised it as his match at the Kalos league. It was the final strike Pikachu had launched at Alain's Mega Charizard. The apprentice asked Ash if he would honour him by signing it. Ash agreed. This wasn't the first time he had been asked to sign something. He signed it quickly, thanked the apprentice, and went on his way.

Exiting the cabin, he could see young children, many of whom he had spoken with. Many of them had said they idolised him, and that meeting him was incredible. Many of them couldn't believe it. Ash had been a bit of a proud personality during that, but in reality, that was more of a front to disguise the fact that he was flustered. He had no idea how to react to being treated like a celebrity. Most of the celebrities he had seen in his life either acted cool and collected, or energetic and a bit proud. Ash had chosen the latter. Though to be fair, he felt it complimented his actual personality more. He wasn't proud to the point that he demanded respect, but he was proud in the sense he was proud of his achievements, and wasn't afraid to let the kids know what it had been like for him. He had been informal with the kids, and told they could call him Ash. But the kids were very polite,so many of them had taken to calling him 'Mr. Ash. He found it adorable. Unfortunately, not all of them had been given the chance to see him, which upset Ash a little, but there wasn't much he could do. He wasn't used to all this praise and fandom, even now.

"Mr. Ash?"

Ash turned to see a child he had spoken in front of, maybe five or six years old, stood with a group of about four. They were pretty far away from their group. They had obviously hunted him down, there was no way they had just run into him by coincidence. One of them was hiding behind the child who had spoken. The child who had spoken was a long haired blonde boy. He wore a black jumper with a Pokèball on the left side of his chest.

"You're... Randell, right?" Ash asked. "Is there something you want?"

Randell shook his head. "Nu-uh. It's not for me, Mr. Ash."

"It's our friend, Jason." Another child, this one, Ash remembered as Kenny, said. "His group didn't get to see you and um..."

"He was wondering if he could ask you something. Please, Mr. Ketchum?" The other child, who had hung back more than his other friends said. Ash remembered her as Kim, but he felt like that was wrong. He had had less than a day to memorise their names, and it was very unlikely he would ever see them again, and there had been so many of them, Ash felt like his head would explode if he remembered all their names.

Ash smiled at the group of young children. "Sure, of course he can."

Randell stepped aside and gently moved the child hiding behind him, Jason, forward towards Ash. Jason wasn't anything particularly unique appearance wise. Brown hair, blue eyes, and he wore a red T-Shirt. He looked like your average camper. Jason was apparently a boy of shy disposition. He slowly walked up to Ash, who wore a warm grin on his face. He had both his hands in front of his mouth in tiny fists. He had his chin tucked into his chest, but looked up at Ash with his eyes.

"Hey, Jason." Ash asked in a kind voice. Jason still seemed very nervous, and he looked back to his friends, seeking confirmation.

"It's okay, Jay, he's really nice." Kim said. This encouragement seemed to edge Jason on.

"Um... I, um..." Jason kept moving his fingers while he spoke. "Um... I - I heard... That you... Had a um..." Jason spoke very quietly, so quietly that Ash had to kneel down to hear him. "I heard you had a, um... A Pokemon that was... Really cool, and um... It was... Um... Like... Shaped like a ball and um... It was super strong... And I..." He seemed to shy out for a second.

"Who, you mean Glalie?" Asked Ash. His voice offered encouragement.

Jason nodded. He seemed to be more comfortable the more he spoke with someone. "I was wondering if ... I could um... If I could meet it?"

"Sure thing, Jason." Ash smiled warmly. He reached for his belt, and, securing Glalie's Pokèball in his hand, he clicked the button in the middle to enlarge the Pokèball, and called out his Ice Type. "Glalie, come on out." The Pokèball opened in Ash's hand, and a light came from the Pokèball, and from out of it, Glalie materialised. "Glalie, this is my friend Jason. He wanted to meet you, buddy."

Glalie seemed happy to comply. He happily went to meet Jason. Jason's nervousness seemed to go away and he started to laugh happily as Glalie greeted him, and did a few small little Ice tricks for him. Jason's friends from behind him cheered him on happily. Ash smiled. He was sad that he would have to go soon. He didn't want to end this kids fun, but he would have to soon.

"Someday, I'm gonna be a trainer, and - and - and I'm gonna be a strong and - and super nice Pokemon master like you, Mr. Ash!" Jason said happily and he hugged Glalie. Ash smiled. He realised this kid was just like he was back then. A kid just happy to be around Pokémon.

"Attention Campers! Attention Campers! The next event will now begin. Please return to the meet up area as quickly as possible." An announcement on the megaphone said. Jason, Randell and their friends all sighed and whined.

"I guess that's it then." Ash said. He was glad he wasn't the one to ruin the kids fun, but he was still sympathetic towards the children. He knew how they felt.

"Awww, I don't wanna go... I wanna play with Glalie some more..." Jason whined. Ash almost laughed. This kid was so shy about a minute ago.

"Tell you what kid." Ash said. "You're gonna be a Pokemon master like me, aren't you? I'll let you play with Glalie some more when you see me when you're on your own journey. I'll even battle you if you wanna."

Jason's face lit up with joy at that idea. "Promise?" He held up his pinky finger, indicating the pinky promise.

Ash smiled and raised his pinky and hooked his with Jason's. "Promise."

"Come on, Jay!" Randell said, tugging at his friends arm. "Next event is the battles with the camps Pokèmon!"

"Let's go quickly, Jay!" Kenny said to his friend.

"Thank you very much Mr. Ash, we've got to go now!" Jason called back as he was dragged away by his friends. Ash smiled and waved as they left to continue with their campsite. As they left, Ash saw Jason and Kim talking intently and smiled. It reminded him of his experience at summer camp. The one where he met Serena.

* * *

It had been four years since Ash had won the Kalos league. Ash, now 19 years old, had been hailed as the official Kalosian champion, and, very recently, had won his native Kanto league, becoming the champion of Kanto as well. He had been well recognised for these achievements, but he wasn't used to all the praise he got.

He walked down the streets, which were busy at this time of day, to collect something. He eyed the amount of money he had gotten from the summer camp. He then pulls some notes from his pocket and counted it all up. 640, 650, 670, 680, 690... Yeah, that would be enough, probably even more than enough. Perhaps he could buy something nicer than he already intended.

He had planned big. Not second best. Second best wouldn't do.

He had already decided which shop he was going to go to. He had seen the perfect item, and he had reserved it for a few weeks now. Now he had finally been paid, he could go and purchase it.

After a long walk, he finally reached the building. It seemed virtually vacant, aside from the cashier. The cashier recognised Ash, and already had his item ready.

* * *

"I'm back!"

Ash entered into the living space where he found his girlfriend Serena laying on the couch, lazily flipping through a magazine. She put it down and smiled. "Hello Ashy."

Ash went a bit red. That name always made his blush. "Hey, sweetheart." Was always his response. It made her blush too. Serena sat up so Ash could have a place to sit down.

The two lived in an bungalow in the Kanto region. It had been a nightmare convincing Serena's mother to let her go, but in the end, it had been Serena's choice, after all. They lived in the outskirts of Pallet town, which was becoming increasingly modern. The two had lived there for two years. They left it every so often to go work or explore a new region, and other things like that. They had lived happily there for a long time, and both of them were content with their lives.

Ash sat down next to Serena and sighed. Pikachu ran off into the 'play room'. The two had set up a room just for their Pokémon. In there now, were the Pokémon that were on break. The ones too large for the room could play outside, but thanks to a large sliding door the two had installed, they could still play with the other Pokémon. Ash smiled, as he was now alone with Serena. "You ready for tonight?" He asked her.

Serena nodded. "I'm excited."

"Oh really?"

"Yep!"

Ash had never really been one to understand dinner dates. He understood food, that was something he didn't need to understand more, but he always liked to do something more adventurous than a dinner date. They were romantic, Ash had to admit, but he felt they could be a bit bland. "I'll never understand how you prefer a dinner date to, I don't know, hiking or something."

Serena smiled. "That kind of thing is fine, but you're tired from the camp work, aren't you? Plus, they're so romantic."

Ash sighed. "Can't argue with that reasoning."

"Of course you can't, Ash." Serena giggled. "Oh, and the food. You don't need more convincing than food, do you?"

"You are really a piece of work, Serena." Ash smiled.

Serena hugged his arm. "You know you love me."

"Again, can't argue with that."

Serena's hair had grown over the last two years, but she had kept it shorter. It was about midway between her old longer hair, and her newer shorter hair. It went past her shoulders, but it didn't go quite down to her waist as her old hair did. Ash remembered this as he put his hand on her head. "You growing your hair again?"

"A little."

"Huh. How're your showcases?"

"Still pretty good. I'm glad Kanto adopted them."

"Your arrival here helped."

"Granted."

The two sat there all the time, just talking, contemplating, wondering, planning, all sorts. It was nice. They say, cuddled, and talked. Serena would then make the two of the, some food, which Ash would wolf down without a second thought. They would then train together, practicing their battling or showcasing. After that, they would go to sleep together. Tonight, however, they planned a dinner date, as they occasionally liked to do. Ash planned, however, for something quite special tonight.

* * *

Ash had dressed up in a suit, a outfit he never usually wore. He disliked them, but they were going to a formal dinner place, so Serena had made him wear one. It was black, with a white shirt underneath. A black tie, and black jeans, and black shoes. Ash began to wonder if he could hide in the shadows and remain completely unnoticed.

Serena on the other hand, wore a not too flashy red jacket, over a long, blue dress, that cut off at her knees. Though she tried to remain humble, just her being her made her fail at it, instead, she looked beautiful, as she always did. Ash never tired of seeing her in those clothes, smiling that smile.

"You ready?" Ash asked. He offered her his hand. She accepted, and hugged it.

"Yep!"

The two left their house, and walked along the streets. Serena had no problem showing off genuine public affection to Ash. Ash was proud that Serena turned some heads. She was beautiful after all, and she was his, and he was hers.

"I'm so happy." She said, randomly to Ash. "I hope we can be like this for the rest of our lives."

In Ash's free hand, he played with a black box. Inside the box, was a ring. A diamond ring, worth 1000 Poké dollars. He had saved up for months to purchase this, and he planned to ask her tonight. He held onto the box tightly, determined not to drop it and give the game away, and put it into his jackets pocket. He then smiled to himself. "Me too."

* * *

Oooooooooh Ash! Well then guys, next week is the final chapter of One Day Off. I can't thank you all enough for sticking with me.

So, what kind of a story should I write next for you all? I wonder. Any suggestions? You can leave them in the reviews. One shot requests are, of course, still open, so feel free to send one should you wish to.

Do you still enjoy my writing guys? Let me know if you do. Also, I'd just like to say, thanks to all of you who have supported me throughout what I write, with my revealing as a Demi, my depression, and everything else. You guys, your kind words, your reviews, genuinely happy attitudes and messages, everything has been great. I'm gonna say more in the final chapter, but thank you all everyone. You guys are awesome.

So, I'll see you next week, in the final chapter. See ya!


	25. Chapter 25 - The finale

"Lara! Lara, stop!"

Lara was a quick runner. She always had been. She quickly dashed to the edge of town, anxious to see someone she thought the world of. She didn't care that it would get her in trouble, she had just kept running. She had an odd habit of running with her arms behind her, slopping in the wind. She felt it helped her run faster, and she wasn't technically wrong.

Lara was 8 years old. She had long, honey colored hair and dark, brown eyes. Her skin was tanned. On her cheeks, she had Z shaped markings, one on each of her cheeks. She wore her usual outfit, which consisted of a long skirt, which was a lightish red, and a navy blue jacket over a white undershirt. She kept her hair tied up at the bottom, which kept it all together.

She was running. Quickly. There is was. The nearest route out of town.

A loud clap was hears, and Lara felt her body being stopped, which resulted in her continuing to run, and kind of rubber banding into the air for a brief second, before landing down, unable to move even if she wanted to.

"Lara Ketchum, what the heck did you think you were doing?" Her father had caught up to her, Ash Ketchum. He knelt down to her level, and put his hands firmly on her shoulders, making her face him. "Do you have any idea how dangerous it is out there without a Pokémon, or someone who knows what they're doing out there?!"

"I know what I'm doing out there, Daddy. I was waiting for big brother, that's all." Lara said to her father. She spoke innocently. "Why is big brother allowed to go out there then, Daddy? It isn't safe, you just said so!"

Ash sighed. "Your brother is a Pokémon trainer, I've told you this. Ashley has two year of experience when it comes to traveling, and training Pokémon. He's allowed to be out there. It's to help him become what he wants to be."

"Why can't I wait for him to come back?" Lara asked.

"Because I'm not leaving you at the nearest exit to the town on your own." Ash told his daughter with a sigh. He had said this to her before. About a hundred times. This wasn't going to be any different. He was almost tempted to not even bother.

Today was quite a big day for them. Ash's oldest son, Ashley, was returning from a two year journey across Kanto. They hadn't even had so much as a phone call from him until about a week ago, letting his parent know he'd be back in a week. He hadn't video called them. He said he was curious to see how they'd react when he showed up, and they saw him in person for the first time in two years. He defiantly sounded more grown up, that much couldn't be denied. They had seen him, however, during the Kanto league. He had done averagely, coming in the top 24. A good place for a first time league competitor, there could be no doubt of that, but he had said he had wanted to advance further. That aside, they hadn't heard much from him.

Lara had been excited all week. She had a good relationship with her brother, and she hadn't seen him in such a long time, and now he was a Pokémon trainer, and she wanted to see what kinds of glamorous Pokémon he had. She had seen some of the Pokémon he had on the TV, but none of them were very cute. He must have more than that though, right?

Ash sighed. "Come on Lara, let's go home. Your mother is bound to be worried about you." He held onto Lara's hand firmly. So she couldn't escape again. She had adopted Ash's personality of running off without thinking. Ash only realized how exasperating it was for someone to do that when he was the one who had to catch them. "Your brother will be back soon, I promise you Lara. Besides, I thought you was gonna help Daddy look after the Pokémon egg we found, huh?" As he spoke, his tone got softer and more affectionate towards his daughter, already putting her attempts at freedom a moment ago a distant memory.

Lara's eyes lightened up. "Oooh, oooh, is the egg wiggling yet?" She asked excitedly.

Ash shook his head. "Nope, but it's close, if I know my Pokémon eggs right. It might take a few more days before it hatches." He was embellishing a bit, Tracey had helped him out with the egg a lot, but he did genuinely know the egg only had a few days to hatch. Everything else, he was clueless on.

"Aw. Then why do you need my help?" A disappointed 8 year old asked.

"To make sure Greninja and Delphox don't get over protective and attack me again." Ash said, grinning. There was no real proof, but due to Serena's Delphox and his Greninja being extraordinarily over protective of the egg that appeared amongst their Pokémon, even Ash had managed to put two and two together.

"Daddy, can I ask you something?" Lara asked her father.

"Sure, kiddo. What's up?" Ash asked. He kept his eyes forward on where they were going.

"Do Greninja and Delpohx love each other, like you and mommy?"

Ash nodded. "I believe so."

"Why do they love each other? I mean, their types and everything are all wrong. They don't match."

Ash sighed and thought of a way to explain it to his daughter. "Lara... Love is... How do I say it... Once you're in love with someone, everything negative about them doesn't seem to exist to you. Let me give you an example. I was a reckless dense idiot when I was a kid, and your mother... She had a... How do I put it... A bit of a... Defeatist attitude when I met her on my journey. But eventually, we just overlooked these things. We helped each other get past them. I became more level headed, and your mother never gave up. It's the same with Greninja and Delphox. They don't care that they aren't type compatible. They just care for each other. That's what love is. You understand?"

Lara nodded. "I... Think so." Lara had gotten to the age when she started asking her parents questions Ash never knew how to give a correct answer to. One he understood, but couldn't always describe to a person, particularly his daughter. His son hadn't been like that at all. He'd never shown any interest in things like that. Much like Ash was.

Ash smiled. "Anyways, we need to make sure the egg is healthy before tonight. We're having a get together for Ashley when he comes back, aren't we?"

Lara nodded. "Uh huh!" Lara had been excited about the get together for a while now. She saw it as a party, whereas in reality, it was mostly an excuse to catch up with old friends and family members.

The two carried in their way back to their home. A large three story house at the top of a hill. Surrounding the house, was a white picket fence, talking off the land they owned. It was a large plot of land, which homes a garden and a small training ground that Ash used fairly regularly. Flowers surrounded it all around, red, blue, yellow and pink.

Lara ran into the house, already dashing off upstairs without even saying a word to anyone. Ash's Pikachu had heard her as she came in. Pikachu had matured in the past few years, now much more adult like, but still a playful Pokémon underneath it all, still acting like he did when he was younger. He hopped onto Ash's shoulder, welcoming his trainer home, before dashing off after Lara, partly to play, partly to make sure she didn't do anything that would result in a whole manner of negative consequences, as things tended to happen with Lara. Ash shut the door behind him and looked around their first floor. He found her in the kitchen, preparing food for their sons return. "I got her home, she's safe, Serena."

Serena turned with a gasp to her husband, shocked by his presence at first, but quickly calmed down, after reprimanding him for sneaking up on her like that.

"What're you making?" Ash asked.

"Nothing special. Ramen noodles, that's all. You know what Ashley is like with his noodles." Serena said. She made the noodles and soup herself, and right now, she was kneading a dough ball. Ash had to compliment her Ramen making abilities, he hadn't even heard of the stuff the first time Serena made it, now it was rising the list of his favorite foods of all time, something Ashley took after, and surpassed, as it was nearly the only thing he would eat, given the choice.

"Need any help?" Ash asked.

"Yeah, just grab the red bottle in that cupboard for me?" Serena asked, nodding at a Cupboard to her left. Ash grabbed a hold of it and put it down by her work stand.

"Two years." She said, as she took the red bottle and applied its contents to the dough. Her voice was on the border of happiness and depression.

"Yeah, I know." Ash said, in a more up beat manner. He had picked up on Serena's upset tone, but he knew why she was like this. It was due to the fact she missed her adventures too. She loved her family, she loved her Ash, she loved her life, but she wished she could be a kid once again too. She was happy for her child going into the world and meeting people like she did with Ash, but she longed to do the same thing all over again.

Serena's day job was teaching. She taught younger trainers the basics of performance. She had caused quite a controversial stir when she accepted boys into performance classes as well as girls, as performances had always been traditionally a female thing. Regardless, it had helped her gain some extra money for the household. She enjoyed teaching too. It did occur to her that she did live a typically feminine life, but she enjoyed that. She loved what she did now.

She looked at the kitchen window. On the window still, we're family pictures. There was one of her and Ash in the Eados region. There was another when Serena had been pregnant with Ashley, and finally Ashley after being born.

Ashley had been named after his father. Ash's full name is technically Ashley Ketchum, but he didn't like to use his full name, or to be referred to by it. It had been his own mother that had gone and suggested he and Serena name their first child after their parents. Though Delia admitted it was supposed to be a joke, Serena had actually taken a genuine liking to the name, and named her son Ashley junior. Unlike Ash, Ashley preferred his full name, and referred to himself as Ashley at all given times. He didn't even like having his name abbreviated by his friends. That had made differentiating them by name much easier, at least.

"You remember when he was just a kid, Ash?" Serena asked. "When all he did was watch the TV. All he did, was watch those old Pokémon shows that they aired."

Ash smiled. "He watched the Pokémon leagues a lot, didn't he?"

"Yes. Particularly with his heroic dad in them." Serena grinned, butting emphasis on the word 'heroic'

* * *

"Electro Iron Tail!"

A young Ashley was sat in front of the TV in the family living room, on the and floor, with his legs crossed, wide eyed and engrossed in the battle that was going down on the television. His sister was being held by him on his lapel a bit like a teddy bear. The TV was presenting reruns of the Kalosian league, and this match was the finals. His dad's match, about 15 years ago. Ashley had known his father was a champion for years now, he had always known, but he had never actually seen the battle with his own eyes. The match had been regarded as one of the most edge-of-your seat battles in the last two decades.

Ash walked past the room, peeking In through the door. He was surprised to see his match being replayed on the TV. He hadn't seen it played in a long time. He grinned at the nostalgic memories of that battle he had.

His noticed Ashley and Lara watching from inside the room. Both entranced by the battling. "Daddy's amazing!" Lara exclaimed aloud, which made Ash grin immensely. He heard Ashley agree.

"Someday, I'm gonna be just like Dad." He said.

* * *

Ash was tending to the Pokémon egg, making sure it was healthy, with Lara there to help calm down Delpox and Greninja when it happened. He heard a doorbell ring, a knock four times, and heard the door open. That was how Ashley always announced he was back home.

Ash dropped everything, excluding the egg, gently placing that back down, and making his way to the front door.

He saw Serena and Lara already tightly hugging him before he'd even gotten halfway into the house. He had laughed as soon as they had attacked him with hugs, asking them to let him go, as he couldn't even move. Once they did, Ash saw his son for the first time in two years.

Ashley wore a plain black jacket with several pockets, that was open though the middle, as he did not do up the zipper. Underneath it, was a white shirt. He wore blue jeans, with holes and scratches through them. They hadn't been bought that way, so they had obviously been damaged while on his journey. His sneakers, which had been bright red when he left, we're now dulled red, probably due to his constant movement. He had a dark green backpack on his back, in which he carried all his essential supplies. It had also been dulled.

Ashley had brown eyes, like his father did, and likewise, he had inherited his black, messy hair, and the birthmarks on both cheeks, though his were slightly more faint that his fathers and sisters', which he inherited from Serena. He also had his mothers slightly lighter tone of skin.

As soon as he saw Ash, Ashley tackled his father with a hug. "Dad!"

Ash was winded for half a second, but then he smiled and returned his kids hug. "Good to see you again." He said, patting his son on the head. Ash and his kid had a very good relationship. Ash had been the one who taught him to battle, the basics of battling, taught him about gym matches and even let him use some of his Pokémon to have practice battles with. Ashley thought very highly of his father, and Ash had faith and confidence in his son, which didn't even fully relate to them being bound by blood. Ash was confident in him as an individual.

"Dad, I need a favor." Ashley asked.

"What is it?"

"I want to battle you."

* * *

Ash stood on one end of the battlefield, and Ashley on the other. Ashley had inherited Ash's impulsive nature, apparently. Serena had sighed and sweat dropped at Ashley's request, recognizing his fathers personality in her child. Lara, for the most part, was excited, and was supporting her brother in the battle, cheering him on, despite the battle not even having started yet.

"Ashley, are you sure about this?" Serena asked, concerned for her child's already hurt pride from his defeat at the Pokémon league.

"I'm sure. " Ashley assured his mother. He looked at Ash. "I want you to go full force on me. Battle me without holding back anything, Dad. Like at the Kalos league. I won't get any better if you go easy."

Ash grinned. "I don't know how to hold back, kid." Pikachu hopped down from Ash's shoulder, ready to battle again, eager to see what Ashley had.

Ashley held up a Pokèball. "Good. I don't either."

"So, what Pokémon are you going to use?" Lara asked her brother.

"Dad'll recognize It." Ashley tossed the Pokèball into the air, and called upon his Pokémon. "Raichu, let's move it!"

* * *

Two years ago, Ashley began his journey. He was still having trouble picking his starter Pokemon, Bulbasaur, Charmander, or Squirtle. He liked them all, and he hadn't come to a conclusion by the time he reached Professor Oaks lab with his father.

"Doesn't this take you back, Ash?" Professor Oak asked Ash in a handshake.

Ash nodded. "Yes it does. Although I wasn't as presentable as Ashley is." He said, grinning, nostalgic.

Ashley know Oak well, but he always acted formally around him, and as such, had made himself look exceptionally presentable, as if about to give a presentation, when he walked in. He tended to also show more respect outwardly than Ash did, whom was quite informal.

Pikachu looked around the lab intensely. It remembered its meeting with Ash. It also remembered destroying half the equipment that was surrounding it right now.

"So, Ashley, as you know, trainers pick from a Bulbasaur, a Charmander, or a Squirtle." Professor Oak told Ashley. He presented a selection of three Pokèball's for Ashley. "Well, here you have your choice to make. You can only pick one Pokémon. So, go ahead."

Ashley considered his options deeply for a good few minutes, occasionally picking up one Pokèball, then putting it down. "I... I just can't pick one."

"What's wrong?" Oak asked. He looked worried, but he wasn't really.

"It's... It's just that... I can't pick one. I mean, they're all awesome Pokémon... But none of them... Feel right, if that makes sense."

Ash and Professor Oak grinned at each other. Ash had been right. "I had a feeling you'd say something something like that" Professor Oak said. He produced another Pokèball from his lab coat pocket. "Well, your father did, so we went out and caught a Pokémon we think you will like." Professor Oak clicked the button, enlarging the Pokèball, releasing the Pokémon inside.

A Pikachu. It tilted its head and surveyed its surroundings in question. "Pika?"

Ash's Pikachu leaped down to greet the Pikachu that had just appeared eagerly. Seeing another Pikachu seemed to put the new one at ease, though it still seemed nervous.

"Huh? I thought trainers couldn't choose a Pikachu as their starting Pokémon?" Ashley asked.

"That's true, but your father did start with a Pikachu as well. It seems only fair that you do as well, if you're wanting to." Oak told Ashley. "It's become a bit of a tradition with your family."

Ashley looked at the Pikachu, analyzing it. The Pikachu picked up on this, and turned to look right back at Ashley. The two stared at each other, locking eyes for a few moments, unblinking. If looks could kill, they'd both be having heart attacks. They seemed to be reading into each other's mind. Their memories, their personality. They seemed to inspect it all. The Pikachu broke it first, by closing its eyes and smiling at Ashley. "Chaaa~"

Ashley smiled. He decided. "I like him. Alright, Pikachu, I'm gonna choose you!"

* * *

Ash grinned at the Raichu. "So, your Pikachu evolved, huh?"

Ashley's Raichu greeted Ash's Pikachu with a small zapping of electricity, which Pikachu returned.

"Raichu's gotten really tough." Ash grinned. "We're gonna beat down Pikachu!"

Raichu glared and grinned with confidence at Pikachu and Ash, "Rai Rai!"

"Well, you asked for it." Ash grinned. "No holding back. Pikachu, Thunderbolt!"

Pikachu had grown in power and ability over the years. It no longer needed an excess amount of time to charge up. As soon as Ash said 'Thunder-' Pikachu had already charged and fired, directly hitting Raichu. Raichu made no effort to dodge, taking the electronic charge head on. There was more electricity than Raichu had anticipated, but it managed to take the hit fairly well. It then used the electricity it had taken from the strike to charge up its own electrical power.

"Raichu, use thunderbolt!" Ashley ordered. Raichu unleashed an electrical storm right back at Pikachu. Pikachu took the hit well. Despite Raichu having maxed its electrical power, Pikachu didn't even flinch, and absorbed the electricity fully.

Ashley was taken aback, before he called his next attack. "Use Rock Smash!"

Raichu collected power into its fist, and charged at Pikachu. For a Raichu, it was fast. However, evolution gives a Raichu raw power, sacrificing its speed. Pikachu was faster, no doubt about it. Raichu slammed it's fist into the ground where Pikachu was, only to discover that Pikachu was already behind it, powering up its next attack.

"Use Iron Tail!" Ash commanded.

"Use iron tail to defend, quickly!" Ashley yelled.

Pikachu was too fast for Raichu. It slammed its Iron Tail into Raichu's back, knocking it forewords. Due to a combination of speed, momentum and power, Raichu sustained a lot of damage.

"Come on Raichu, get up! Use Rock Smash, back to back!" Ashley commanded. Raichu got to its feet, and powered up both its fists, and charged right at Pikachu. Strike after strike flew at Pikachu, who dodged them all, performing jumps, spins and back-flips while dodging.

Serena sighed. "Couldn't you hold back a little, Ash?..." He really was going for straight up champion level of battling.

Lara meanwhile, didn't even seem to notice the terrible situation her brother was in. "Go on, big brother! Beat up Daddy's Pokémon!"

"Use Quick Attack!" Ash commanded. Pikachus movement speed gave him the advantage over Raichu. It slammed right into Raichu, pushing it back further.

"Use Volt Tackle!" Ashley ordered. Raichu suddenly became entrapped in an electrical cloak, which damaged the very battlefield Raichu stood upon. Tapping into its final reserves of speed, Raichu made a beeline straight for Pikachu, unbalanced after recovering from the Quick Attack.

"Iron Tail, and make it double!" Ash commanded.

Pikachu, as if playing chicken with Raichu,more pared its Iron Tail attack, and waited. Closer, it needed to be closer. Five feet away, four, three, two... Now! Pikachu swung its tail into the ground, which created a small trench, and launching itself into the air. Raichu, moving too quickly to react, tripped into the trench, falling flat on its face, which cancelled the Volt Tackle. An embarrassed Raichu picked itself up, unaware of Pikachu falling upon him. With a twist of his body, Pikachu slammed Raichu, on the head, into the ground, with a second Iron Tail. Using gravity to its advantage, Pikachu had just secured the win. It was over.

"Raichu!" Ashley ran out, picking up his injured starting Pokémon, holding it in his arms. Raichu nodded, affirming it was okay. It also conveyed its apologies for loosing the match. "You were awesome Raichu. Just awesome. Completely and utterly awesome, buddy."

"You've trained Raichu well, Ashley." Ash complimented his son on his Raichu's strength.

"We didn't even land a damaging hit on you, Dad. How is that any good?" Ashley asked, dejected.

"You nor Raichu ever gave up. A worse trainer would have. A worse trained Pokémon would have. Neither of you did, and you both knew I wasn't in your league. You both knew I had more experience and strength than you two could get. That's just a fact. But you didn't give up. That's a sign of a great trainer." Ash patted Raichu on the head. "Raichu trusted in you, Ashley. It too to heart what you said and didn't give up." Ash then put a hand on his sons shoulder. "And you trained Raichu to be powerful. But remember, evolution isn't everything. Raichu sacrifices speed for power when it evolved. That's how Pikachu won."

Ashley nodded, smiling. "Right!" He had learnt one more useful skill in battling.

* * *

That night, a large get together, celebrating Ashley's return commenced. By an amazing coincidence, all of their friends had moved nearby Ash and Serena. People like Brock, May, Dawn, Paul and likes now lived close by. It hadn't been planned like that, but it had been an added incentive. Many of them now had kids and families of their own.

To give a few examples, Misty and Tracey had gotten together and now had a child called Sketch, a homage to both Tracey's last name, and his fondness for sketching. Coincidentally, Sketch loved to draw as well

Drew and May had finally admitted their mutual romantic feelings for each other, apparently before Ash and Serena had even gotten together, May just hadn't thought to mention it, and had two kids, one a very, as quoted by Ashley, cute and very nice girl called Rose, who took after her mother to an almost frightening degree, and a younger boy called Hoshi, whom was obsessed with battling. The two didn't always get along.

Dawn and Kenny had gotten together in their late teens, after Lenny finally found the courage to tell Dawn he liked her, and has only one kid, a girl whom they had named Crystal. Crystal loved battling, a contrast to her parents, which occasionally sparked friction between them.

Iris and Cilan had gotten together at some point. When, Ash had really no idea, but it made more sense than what they called their child. Pupil. Ash had to ask on this one, as he had no idea where this had come from. Iris claimed it was something to do with her villages traditions when it came to naming, and Cilan enjoyed the irony of calling his child both their name, and his "pupil" simultaneously. Pupil had a healthy interest in connessuring, but he had no ambition to be a full time connoisseur of everything under the sun, like his father did. He was much more laid back and only occasionally pointed out things his connesure knowledge granted him when it was needed. Although, he did inherit his fathers posing and easily excitable nature.

Clemont had ended up dating Korrina not long after he stopped traveling with Ash. The two had gotten along well during their time together. They didn't have any children right now, and they were the only couple who weren't actually married. As for Bonnie, she was still on a traveling journey. She had met Mays younger brother Max, and the two now journeyed together. May had always said something was there between the two, but max and Bonnie denied it continuously.

Brock had married a nurse he met while in medical training, surprisingly, even more surprising was that it wasn't a nurse Joy. They had about 6 children, as seemed to be theme with Brock's family tradition of having too many children for any average family to manage both physically and economically,meet somehow Brock managed, most likely due to his years of experience of looking after his brothers and sisters at home.

That left Paul and Trip. Trip had remained alone by his own choice, while Paul had one kid, a boy, whom he named Shinjo, which was apparently a variation of his name in another language. He didn't have a wife or girlfriend, Ash had no idea where she had gone, he had never met her, but Paul took it on himself to look after Shinjo. While he was strict, Shinjo respected his father, and tended to be fairly obedient.

As their children played together, and the adults laughed and reminisced, Ash saw Ashley walk out of the room, trying to sneak off unnoticed. Ash separated from the social group, and followed Ashley. He saw him outside, watching the stars. His hands were supporting his head as he looked up. He let out a sigh.

"What's up with you?" Ash asked.

Ashley sighed. "Just remembering our battle. Trying to figure out what I did wrong."

Ash smiled. "You didn't do much wrong at all. I just have more experience then you is all."

Ashley smiled. I suppose so."

Ash smiled. For some reason, the time of day, the surroundings, this reminded him of when he asked Serena the question. One of his favorite memories.

* * *

Ash had presented a Diamond ring. He was on one knee, and held the ring up in one hand. Serena stood there, in awe. In simple awe. She couldn't believe what she was seeing. It felt like a dream, but no matter how hard she pinched herself, she wouldn't wake up.

"Serena, I -" Ash didn't even get another word in before being hugged tightly by a ecstatic Serena.

"Yes!" Serena yelled, tightly hugging onto Ash.

Ash laughed at this. "I didn't even get to finish asking my question!" He returned the hug.

"I don't care! It's still yes!" Serena yelled, tightly hugging Ash.

Ash laughed. He had been terrified of asking the question. Only Serena could make it a big joke like this. He smiled and hugged her close.

* * *

Ash and Serena sat, cuddling one another, long after the welcoming party was over. They had stayed awake, clearing everything up, and we're now laying in bed. Ash was half asleep, trying to keep awake.

"You can go to sleep of you want, Ash." Serena said with an amused smile.

"I'm gonna... I will once you fall asleep." Ash said, already drowsy. He was deep in thought. Thinking about the past.

"Whats up?" Serena asked, nuzzling herself under Ash's neck with the back of her head.

"I was just thinking..." Ash said, "If I hadn't taken that one day off all that time ago... This wouldn't be happening right now, would it?"

Serena nodded. "Yeah, I know... It's weird to think about that... Heck, it's scary, to think I'd never be with you..." Serena shuddered.

Ash tightened his hold around his shuddering wife. "Relax. I'm here."

Ash smiled. He was so glad he had taken his day off that day. He dreaded to think what his life would be like had he not.

He had a family he loved, and a wife he loved more than life itself. Had he not taken one day off, just one, he could be so unhappy now. Life was perfect. He couldn't have asked for more.

"I love you Ash."

"I love you too, Serena."

* * *

And that. Is. That. One Day Off has, sadly, come to an end.  
What can I say guys? Thank you all for being through this with me. It's been a great 25 chapters, and I've loved writing this.  
Well, to start, every one of you who Favorited, reviewed, followed, or anything, thank you all so much. You've made this story worth writing.  
I've been depressed while writing this whole thing, but your reviews, messages, and everything made it better. It helped so much. It made me want to do more, just to see Those reviews. I've felt dedicated to you guys, trying to get these out at least once a week, and just hearing that I make you happy with these is glorious beyond glory.  
I will work on the next story while I'm in the USA. I'm there for three weeks, and Internet is an uncertainty. I'll work to make the next story something to blow your socks off, i promise.

To all of you guys on social media, I have a Tumblr where I alert people to my fanfics if you don't see them. It's a good place to check out for more stuff - GamingEmpire

I also do a YouTube channel. I'm starting a new one. If you've stuck with me this far, perhaps it's worth checking out my YouTube content also channel- Channel/UCWXKJg-NcK9EE-QtPNbjCsg . ( Put that after Youtube. doesn't like links for some reason)

Anyways guys. Thank you all so much for making this a pleasurable experience. I'm happy that I finished the story for you. But I'm sad to see it go.

As always guys, I will see you in the next chapter, of whatever it is, I do indeed, decide, to make next. See ya!


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